Snarled
by kajoqixuye
Summary: Eighteen years ago, Princess Rapunzel was saved from a mysterious intruder by the captain of the guards and his son, Marcus. But when an excursion into the woods turns into a struggle to return home safely, Rapunzel finds herself partnering with Marcus's archenemy, notorious thief Flynn Rider, with unexpected results for both of them. And the danger from her infancy is not gone…
1. Divergence

**A/N: So this is one of those "what-if" scenarios, meaning that it will have some similarities to the actual _Tangled_, but will be, of course, different in many other ways. Hope you like it.**

**Obligatory disclaimer: I do not claim ownership of the movie _Tangled_, its characters, storyline, or anything related to it.**

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

This is a story of a girl named Rapunzel, and it starts with the sun.

So, once upon a time, a single drop of sunlight fell to the earth. From this union of sun and earth grew a magical golden flower, with the power to heal the sick and injured. Unfortunately, however, it did not go unnoticed. Well, it would have been fortunate if it had been noticed by kind-hearted people who wanted to use its power to help the needy…but it wasn't. Instead, it was a sorceress by the name of Mother Gothel who saw it. Thanks to her practice of magic, she was able to use the flower's power, but she only used it for herself, to restore her lost youth. For many years she hoarded this power, invoking it with a special song, and though centuries passed, she remained young and beautiful. And all the while, she kept the flower hidden, so no one else would know of it.

But, one day, the queen of the nearby kingdom of Corona fell seriously ill. This was grave news to the king and all of the citizens, for not only was the queen well-loved by all, but she was pregnant. So the king refused to let her succumb to her illness, and issued a search for anything that could cure the queen. However, for many days, nothing turned up. The queen grew more and more ill, and the king more and more worried.

Only the magic flower could save the queen, but the greedy Mother Gothel refused to share its power. However, one night, after she had finished singing to it and restored her youth, she heard voices, and realized that the searchers were drawing near. She quickly made her escape, but in her haste, failed to properly hide the golden flower. And so, when Julius, the captain of the royal guard, arrived in the area, he beheld a beautiful, shining, golden flower. Upon seeing it, he could not help but gaze in wonder; the flower was known of, but he had hardly expected to come across something so rare. Yet he did not question his luck, and immediately had it brought to the queen. The flower was made into a potion for the queen, and cured her illness, much to the delight of everyone in the kingdom.

Well, everyone except Mother Gothel. She was furious that the flower had been taken away, but was determined to not let her opportunity for immortality slip away so easily.

Soon after the queen was cured, she gave birth to a baby girl, whom the king and queen named Rapunzel. She had beautiful golden hair, the same color as the magical flower. And the king and queen could not be happier.

But it was in this child that Mother Gothel saw her chance. The flower's power could not have vanished; it must have been transferred. And since the queen was pregnant at the time of consuming the flower, there was only one logical place for that power to go: into her child.

So Mother Gothel decided to sneak into the castle and investigate the newborn princess's capabilities. And things would have gone horribly for the king, queen, and princess if it hadn't been for Captain Julius's four-year-old son, Marcus…

* * *

Marcus's eyes opened, wide with fear from the nightmare he had just woken up from. Looking up from his bed, he noticed it was still dark outside, and shivered. _That_ certainly didn't help his fears. He couldn't remember exactly what the nightmare was, but he did recall a cloaked figure, moving in the darkness…

He let out a whimper of fright and got out of bed, intending to go to his father for comfort. But then, he stopped. "No," he said aloud. "Daddy wouldn't be afraid of this, and I won't either!" He looked around defiantly, as if expecting the figure from his dreams to suddenly appear in his room at that moment and try to frighten him. "I'm not scared," he said, the words giving him some comfort. And, as if to prove it, he took a blanket off his bed, tied it around his neck, and picked up his toy sword, then began prancing around the room. "I can't get scared if I'm gonna be cap'n one day!"

He then proceeded to clash blades with imaginary enemies, seeing in his mind's eye _their_ scared faces, rather than his own. He smiled as he pictured himself victorious over the bad people who threatened Corona…just like what his father did.

Then, he found himself up against their most powerful warrior. He ducked, slashed, and twirled as he fought an epic battle, his enemy slowly weakening. Finally, he ducked around his imaginary villain, spun around, raised his sword for the final blow…

…and dropped it to the floor, stunned by what was in front of him.

A figure in a dark cloak was standing by his window. He couldn't see the face, but he could still see that someone was there. That someone may not have been paying attention to him at the moment, but he was still frozen stiff with terror. Then, before his eyes, the figure put a hand on the wall next to the window and hoisted itself up. Somehow, it was climbing the walls of the castle.

Very slowly, Marcus inched himself backward. Then, when the figure's torso was out of sight, and had no way of seeing him anymore, he broke into a run.

* * *

Captain Julius never expected to get much sleep. Between being the captain of the guard in charge of keeping the castle safe and the only parent of a four-year-old, rest had become more of a privilege than a right. But he accepted it. It was part of his duty to his kingdom…and his son.

Still, it didn't stop him being annoyed when he found himself being shaken awake in some dark hour of night. "Daddy!"

He groaned softly. "Yes, Marcus?"

"Daddy, there's…there's…"

Julius opened his eyes. "It's okay, Marcus. Did you have another nightmare?"

"No! It was real! He was really there!"

Julius raised an eyebrow. "Who was really there?"

"Someone outside my window!"

The captain blinked. "What?"

"Someone was outside my window!"

"When?"

"Now!"

"Who?"

"I dunno. Someone in a cloak!"

The captain frowned. "You're sure?"

"Yeah!"

He rose into a sitting position in his bed. "Are they still there?"

"No. He climbed up the walls."

"Climbed up the walls?"

"Yeah! I swear, it really happened!"

Julius thought for a moment. Marcus had been known to make up elaborate stories…but he could usually tell when his four-year-old son was telling him a fictional tale and when he was telling him the truth. Besides, it would be unlike Marcus to wake him up for a made-up story.

So…maybe there really was someone scaling the walls of the castle. It was improbable…but not impossible. He knew his men did a good job guarding the perimeter, but he also knew that no one was perfect, and it _was_ impossible to have an absolutely impenetrable security system. But why would someone be climbing the walls right outside of his son's room? The room directly above Marcus's was…

Realization dawned on the captain of the guards, and he leapt out of bed. "Marcus, stay here, okay?"

"Is everything gonna be all right, Daddy?"

"Everything will be fine. Just stay here until I come back, okay?"

His son looked worried, but nodded.

Moving quickly, Julius grabbed his sword and dashed out of his room, hoping he was not too late.

* * *

Mother Gothel stood over the crib, clutching the lock of brown hair and scowling. So, the hair retained the flower's magical healing properties…but only if it was still attached to the princess's head. Therefore, she couldn't just cut the hair off and use it. She would have to take more drastic measures…

She had just begun leaning in towards Rapunzel when the door burst open, and the captain stepped in. "Don't move!" he yelled, sword extended towards her.

Her instinct of self-preservation took over Mother Gothel, and she jumped back from the crib. A second later, she realized what she'd done, and cursed under her breath. With an armed guard looking to protect the princess, and with her in the body of an old woman, she had very little chance of getting to the child again, even with the small amount of magic that she could use. The captain advanced on her, and she backed away. "Who are you," he said, "and what are you doing here?"

Mother Gothel made her decision. Turning her back on him, she rushed out of the open window and went down the wall, back the way she came.

"Hey!" yelled the captain. He ran over to the window and looked down, to see the mysterious figure climbing down the castle walls. He frowned. He had only caught a glimpse of her, but her age had been noticeable, and he had a hard time believing that an old woman could move with such agility.

But there was no time to wonder about such matters. Turning around, he swiftly walked back to the door, pausing to make sure Rapunzel was okay, at the same time that the king and queen arrived. "Julius!" said the king. "What's going on?"

"Someone was in here," said Julius, indicating the open window.

The queen gasped. "Rapunzel…"

"She seems to be fine," said Julius. "I arrived before she could do anything."

"She?" said the king.

"The intruder was a woman." Julius frowned. "I believe. But I must give chase."

The king nodded. "Yes. Find her and find out what she was doing in our daughter's room."

Julius nodded, and raced out of the room as the king and queen ran over to check on Rapunzel.

* * *

Unfortunately, the mysterious woman had gotten enough of a head start that she was able to evade the guards' pursuit. Julius later discovered that a couple of them were a bit drowsy, and had a hard time remembering what had happened. Believing them to have been falling asleep at their posts, he rebuked them both sharply, and warned them to not let such a thing happen again.

Fortunately, the princess was unharmed, and Julius found himself treated to the never-ending thanks of the king and queen. "Oh, it's not me you should be thanking," he said. "It's Marcus. He woke me up and told me that he saw someone outside his window. If it hadn't been for him, I wouldn't have known anything about this until…well, until something had happened."

"But you were the one who thought to go to Rapunzel's room," said the queen, holding her child, who was smiling up at the captain. "You cannot deny credit for that."

The king nodded in agreement. "You have served us very well today, Captain Julius. I promise you, this feat will not be forgotten."

Julius gave a light bow. "I am always happy to be of service."

* * *

And so, the crisis was averted. Security around the castle was strengthened, and a notice was put out to be on the lookout for a suspicious-looking old woman in a dark cloak. Julius—and Marcus—were honored for their work. And after several weeks of not seeing any sign of her, the inhabitants of the castle began to relax, and believe that the old woman would not come back.

But they underestimated whom they were dealing with. Mother Gothel had been bested, but not vanquished. She was determined to find a way to make the magical flower's power hers once again…even if it took her years to come up with a solution. She had other magic that would sustain her body for a little while. The flower's power—no, the princess's power—would belong to her once more. And next time, no one would stop her.

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: So there's the first chapter. I expect to have the second one up soon.**

**Also, in case anyone was wondering, Julius is not the name that I gave to the existing captain of the guards character. He is someone entirely different, an original character that I stuck in the _Tangled_ universe and just so happened to change everything.**


	2. The Princess and the Captain

**Eighteen Years Later**

"Princess! Wake up already!"

Captain Marcus sighed as he finished pounding on the door. What was keeping Rapunzel in? She hardly ever slept this late, and there was a lot to do today. "Rapunzel!" he called again. But still, no answer. "Ugh, he's not going to be happy about this…" he muttered, putting a hand up to his face and turning around.

But when he removed his hand from his face, there was another face there to greet him. "Hey!"

"Ah!" Marcus took an involuntary step back in surprise. "Wha…" He frowned. "Rapunzel…"

The princess giggled. "Sorry, Marcus. Couldn't resist."

"Of course not. So, how long have you actually been up?"

"Longer than you have, lazybones."

He narrowed his eyes. "I had a late night last night…"

"Sure you did," she replied, still grinning at him.

"_And_ I've been going around all morning getting things done. How much have _you_ gotten done today?"

"Oh, not much. Just finalized the plans for the decorations, double-checked the guest list, made sure the menu was correct, helped Tara organize the bookshelves, stopped by the infirmary to see if anyone there needed help, and snuck up behind my best friend while he thought I was still asleep."

Marcus blinked. "I didn't think a princess was supposed to be so involved in the planning of her own birthday party."

"I can be as involved as I want. It's my birthday, isn't it?"

"Yes, but we do have people to do all of that work…" He sighed. "Ah, never mind. I've learned not to argue with you."

She smiled. "Good for you."

"But…" he grinned at her, "have you taken Maximus out for a ride yet?"

"You mean your horse? Sounds like your responsibility."

"Please. At this point, you're practically his owner. Besides, you did offer to take him out if I was busy."

"And you're busy now?"

"Yep. So…"

"I'll do it later today. I'm going to see Miss Gothel, remember?"

He frowned. "That's today? I thought you just went recently."

Rapunzel shrugged. "She said she wanted to see me again. I thought I could spare a couple of hours today. After all, there _are_ other people working on the party."

Marcus raised his eyebrows. "Well, _this_ is a rare moment, indeed."

"What?"

"You listening to something I said."

She punched him lightly on the shoulder. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"Actually, Princess, I'm supposed to escort you to the ballroom." He adopted an air of mock haughtiness. "Sir Gilbert wishes to make sure the princess understands the proper techniques involved in a royal ballroom dance."

Rapunzel would have giggled at his tone if the message hadn't made her groan. "Again? Why can't I just dance like I want to?"

"Because being a princess carries certain expectations," replied Marcus, grinning. "Also, you may want to put on shoes. And get your hair braided."

Rapunzel looked back at her hair, which was, undoubtedly, the most remarkable part about her (at least, her appearance). It was golden, even more beautiful than that of most people with blonde hair. But it was also about seventy feet long. When she had been little, cutting her hair had made it turn brown, and she had made such a fuss about it that everyone had decided to keep it as it was. So it continued to grow longer and longer, and it would have gotten to the point where it would have been cut, regardless of Rapunzel's protests, when it was discovered that her hair had magical healing properties. If she sang to it in a certain way, it would glow, and could heal any wound that it was in contact with. Such an ability, of course, was invaluable, and since cutting the hair turned it brown and nullified its powers, it had been allowed to grow. So now, it trailed far behind the princess, and people had to be careful not to trip over it or anything. Fortunately, it could be braided in such a way that it only hung to her ankles or so—a technique that had come very much in handy—and it was much lighter than most hair, so it didn't weigh down her head very much (though Marcus liked to joke that it was her thick skull keeping it up).

She sighed. "Do I have to?"

"Afraid so." He gave her a sympathetic look. "But don't worry. It won't take too long, and I'm sure that if you tell Gilbert that you're going to see Miss Gothel today, he won't keep you."

"Fine," said Rapunzel, and strode into her room to put on one of her few pairs of shoes. For reasons some people didn't understand, and some just turned their nose at, she preferred walking almost everywhere barefoot. This was tolerated when there was no event that required her to look fancy, but when there was, she had to be persuaded to wear something on her feet. And Sir Gilbert, who was rather uppity in his demeanor, would no doubt insist that the princess wear shoes for her birthday party.

* * *

Several minutes later, Rapunzel and Marcus strode down the castle corridors, the former now with shoes, braided hair, and a small chameleon on her shoulder, named Pascal, whom Rapunzel had found one day and refused to get rid of. "It may be difficult to dance properly with a chameleon on your shoulder, though," Marcus commented, earning a glare from the reptile.

"Do you think you could slow it down a bit?" said Rapunzel. "The later we get there, the less time I'll have to spend there."

Marcus chuckled and slowed his pace. "That's rather unlike you."

She sighed. "I know. I just…don't know why I can't be myself at these events. I mean, it's a party for me, right? So why can't I just do what I want?"

"Well," said Marcus, "unfortunately, it's not just for you. It's for everyone. Sure, we're celebrating your birthday, but it's a chance for everyone to see the princess they admire, in all her royal splendor. They look up to you, and so we need to show them that our princess is someone truly respectable."

Rapunzel frowned. "There are other ways to show someone's respectable."

"I know. But this is one of the best ones, especially for the more traditional-minded in the kingdom. A very independently-minded princess may appeal to some people, but we don't want to risk alienating the others."

"What about people who are alienated by tradition?"

Marcus shrugged. "We hope that they understand that traditional duties are part of your job description." Seeing her dissatisfied expression, he continued, "Look, I know it's not perfect. But you've been through it before. Just do your best to relax and go along with things. You'll have some fun, I'm sure of it." They drew up to the ballroom door. "Just, ah, maybe not right now."

She gave him a look, then sighed. "Well, thanks. I'll do my best."

He smiled at her. "Good luck."

* * *

After dropping Rapunzel off, Marcus went off himself to make sure his men were all prepared for the following day. He hoped that it would be unlikely for anyone to try anything on the princess's birthday, but there was always the possibility. The guards were not exceptionally talented…but they were loyal, and thanks to the leadership of both him and his father, quite capable of protecting what needed to be protected.

He let out a sigh. He really missed his father. Julius had been killed in a recent skirmish with a group of notorious outlaws, almost exactly one year ago. The outlaws had all been defeated, either killed or captured, but the captain of the guards had died, pushing his twenty-one-year-old son to the position of captain. Marcus was not incapable, but he was taking the position at a younger age than he had expected, and struggled a bit with the responsibility. But anyone who knew him would say that he had adjusted well, and was doing a good job of filling in the role of his father.

He himself was confident in his abilities. He had had much combat training, as well as seeing firsthand how his father led the other men. And there was also the cape. He wore a red cape almost everywhere he went, which, if he had to be honest, made him feel important and grand. But it also served as a reminder of his duties—it had been a reward for him when, eighteen years ago, he had helped to save the baby Rapunzel from a mysterious intruder. The king and queen, knowing he liked to wear a cape and play around, had gifted him with one (though it had been rather big at the time). But he had kept it, and now wore it with pride, enjoying the feel of it flowing behind him as he walked down the halls. Careful not to get it caught on a nearby suit of armor, he rounded the next corner.

"Oof!"

Marcus let out the exclamation as he ran into someone coming the other way, someone who was carrying a large stack of books. Both of them stumbled, and the books went falling to the ground, one of which hit him on the foot. "Ah!" he said. "That's a heavy one…"

The other person looked horrified. "C-Captain Marcus…oh, I'm so sorry, sir!"

Marcus took his foot out from under the large book and looked up. It was Tara, who worked in the royal library. She was fairly young—only twenty—but she had an excellent knowledge of literature, and a fantastic memory, making her an ideal candidate for the job. She even wore glasses, which Marcus secretly thought amusing, given her job. "Don't worry about it," he said, as she dropped down to pick up the books. "I should have watched where I was going."

"Oh, no, I should have seen you."

He raised an eyebrow. "Carrying all of these? I'm surprised you could see where you were going at all." He knelt down. "Here, let me help you…"

"Oh, you don't have to trouble yourself, sir…"

"Certainly, I don't. But it's no trouble." He stacked up the remaining books on the ground and picked them up. "There we go. See? Easy."

Tara stood up, too, the rest of the books in her arms. "Thank you, sir." She held out her arms, as if expecting him to place the other books in them.

Instead, he raised an eyebrow at her again. "Hang on. Where are you going with all of these?"

"Oh, I'm taking them to Sir Thatch. He's compiling a work on nearby celestial bodies and he needs some information."

Marcus hefted the books in his hands. "And he needs every one of these?"

Tara smiled somewhat sheepishly at him. "There's a lot of information about astronomy, sir."

"Evidently." Marcus thought for a second. "Well, I'm already carrying these, and Sir Thatch's room isn't too far away. Here, I'll help you bring them to him."

Tara looked taken aback. "Well…thank you, Captain, but…"

"But nothing. It'll only take a few minutes. I don't have any urgent business to attend to." He jerked his head in the direction of Sir Thatch's chambers. "Come on."

The young bookkeeper smiled at him. "O-okay. Thank you!"

The pair of them walked together down the hall. "Excited for the party tomorrow?" said Marcus.

Tara nodded. "Oh, yes. I…I'm not usually one for parties, but I always like the princess's. Everyone is so happy."

Marcus chuckled. "Yes, most of the time."

Tara looked at him questioningly. "Most, sir?"

"Oh, I was just speaking with the princess a few minutes ago. She's a little…well, not quite upset, but dissatisfied that there are certain ways she has to act on her birthday."

"Certain ways?"

"Sure. Putting on a formal air, dancing properly, wearing shoes…"

Tara couldn't help but grin. "She doesn't seem to like shoes."

"You don't have to tell me."

Her smile fell slightly. "No…I guess I don't."

They walked on in silence for a little while, until finally coming to their destination. "All right, here we are," said Marcus. Moving to the door that led into Sir Thatch's study, he pounded on it with his elbow. "Sir Thatch?" he called.

A few moments passed, in which the noises of someone stumbling around and papers moving could be heard, and then the door opened to reveal an older man, bald on the top of his head but with a sizable white beard. "Captain Marcus!" he said. "This is an unexpected pleasure."

Marcus smiled in response. "A pleasure to see you as well, Sir Thatch." He lifted up his stack of books. "I believe you ordered a rather large delivery?"

"Ah, yes," said Thatch, looking over at Tara. "Thank you, my dear. I hope you didn't need to call for his extra muscle to do the job."

"No, I merely bumped into her and offered to help," said Marcus. "Though this does seem like a lot…"

"The outer space has much to offer us, my good captain," said Thatch.

"Evidently," said Marcus. "So…do you mind if we come in?"

"Oh, no, of course not." The old man stood back and allowed the two to enter. "Just place them on my desk. Anywhere is fine."

Marcus cast a look at Thatch's desk, which was piled with papers that had all sorts of writings and drawings on them. "Er…anywhere, sir?"

"Yes, anywhere. I'll sort it all out later."

Marcus had a hard time believing that Thatch would sort out anything, but set them down on what looked to be the smallest stack of paper. Next to him, Tara did the same.

"Thank you both," said Thatch. "You know, I'm just finishing up a—rather impressive, if I may say so myself—paper on some astounding mathematical discoveries in the past two centuries. But I'd love an audience to give me some feedback before I actually put it forward." He looked at them both brightly.

Marcus spoke first. "Well, ah…that sounds interesting, but I do need to go check on my men. Make sure they're all ready for tomorrow, and everything."

Thatch raised an eyebrow. "You think there is a security risk for the princess's party?"

"You never know. We need to make sure nothing happens."

"Yes, well, that's true. I understand, then." He turned to Tara. "What about you, dear?"

"Oh! Um…sure, I don't mind."

"Wonderful! Just hold on one moment while I get it out."

He turned back to his desk, and Marcus took the opportunity to give Tara a sympathetic look, which she returned with a smile and a shrug. "Well," said Marcus, "hope it goes well. See you both tomorrow, then?"

"Oh, of course," said Thatch, not turning around. "Wouldn't miss it."

"Great." He looked back at Tara. "See you then, then."

She nodded. "R-right."

He flashed a quick smile at her before turning and leaving the room. He really did need to get everything settled with the guards…but he wasn't too disappointed about missing Thatch's paper. Well, at least Tara didn't seem to mind listening to it. The old man could still have an attentive audience.

* * *

Tara didn't particularly mind listening to Sir Thatch, but at the moment, her mind was not on his paper. It was where it tended to be a lot—on the man who had just left the room. Captain Marcus was certainly a handsome young man: fairly tall and muscular, with well-groomed black hair and an attractive face. It was no secret that he was the object of affection for many of the young girls around the castle—and outside of it, as well. And Tara was no exception.

Still, she knew that her attraction to him was little more than a fantasy. Marcus had all sorts of girls and young women fawning over him, and while she herself was not unattractive, there were many others who were more beautiful than she was. Most notably…the princess. It was widely suspected that Princess Rapunzel and Captain Marcus had a thing for each other, and many expected them to announce their engagement soon—especially now that the princess was about to turn eighteen. Tara didn't know for certain if this was true, but there was certainly evidence to back it up: they had known each other for years, grown up together, and spent much time together, often laughing and having a good time. Tara would be lying if she claimed she wasn't jealous, but still, she couldn't hold that against Rapunzel. The princess was very kind and well-loved, and had no reason to give up Marcus to anyone else…least of all one of the castle bookkeepers.

"Tara?"

"What?" She snapped back to attention, to find Thatch looking at her expectedly. "Oh…I'm sorry, sir, what was that?"

"I asked if you thought that my last sentence praised Isaac Newton too much, or if I should give more credit to Gottfried Leibniz."

"Oh, um…" She hadn't heard that last sentence at all. "Perhaps…perhaps if you read it again, I would get a better sense."

Sir Thatch gave her a strange look. Then, he lowered his paper. "Tara…you've barely heard a word I've said, haven't you?"

"Oh, no, sir, it's not like that…I think the material is interesting, I do…"

"I'm not saying you think my material is uninteresting—and I should hope you don't," he added with a huff. "But your mind is on something else." He glanced at the door. "Or should I say, some_one_ else."

Tara went red. "I…I'm sorry, sir…"

Thatch shrugged. "I understand. I was young once, too." His eyes became more grave. "But…I must warn you that you should not expect it to end well for you."

Tara sighed. "I know. But…it's hard to control."

"I'm sure it is. But do you know what I think?"

She looked up at him. "What?"

"I think that you will find a way to get over it. Now I'm not saying anything against you—you're a perfectly respectable and very pleasant young woman—but I cannot reasonably see the outcome that you long for. But, whatever happens, I think that you are strong enough that you will be able to move on."

She smiled lightly at him. "Thank you, sir. I…I hope so, too."

"Yes. Now, do you think we can get back to this?" He held up his essay.

Tara nodded. "Yes, sir."

Thatch's words had given her comfort, and she was able to pay better attention as he read off his paper to her. Still, she couldn't help that sense of longing that she knew so well.


	3. Miss Gothel

Rapunzel skipped down to the stables, glad to be free of her dancing lessons. Eventually, Sir Gilbert had decided her performance was "passable," and agreed to let her go, though she suspected that he would have kept her longer if she hadn't mentioned that she had promised to go visit Miss Gothel that day.

Rapunzel enjoyed visiting the old woman—wait, that's not quite right. Miss Gothel wasn't old; by her appearance, you'd think she was in her mid-thirties, at most. Still, she gave off an air of one who had lived for a long time. Maybe she was hiding her age, maybe she was just especially sophisticated. Rapunzel wasn't sure, but it wasn't important to her. Miss Gothel had always been kind to her—aside from a few times when she had just been in a bad mood—and it was nice for Rapunzel to have some time to talk to another woman. Not that there weren't any other women in her life; there was her mother, of course, and several kind women in the castle who were always willing to help her. But the queen was often busy, and Rapunzel often felt as though a lot of the other women liked to baby her too much. That, and visiting Miss Gothel allowed her to get out of the palace a bit. Her parents, and several other people in the palace, had been uncomfortable with this at first, but eventually agreed to let her go out, as long as she concealed her identity. Miss Gothel knew who she was, of course, but Rapunzel had to ride out to get to her, and could be easily identified while doing so. Thus, when she went out, it was always with her hair braided and tucked behind a long brown cloak, which she wore to cover her face.

She arrived at the stables in a good mood, and walked over to her favorite horse (though he did, technically, belong to Marcus), a white stallion named Maximus. "Hi, Maximus!" she said brightly.

Maximus immediately brightened up upon seeing her; her love of him was mutual, which was another reason that Rapunzel was allowed to go visit Miss Gothel—Maximus was very loyal and tough as nails, and if trouble found her, he would do everything he could to protect her.

"Ready to ride out, boy?" she said.

Maximus whinnied happily in affirmation. "Great! Oh, and I brought you this…"

Rapunzel pulled out an apple from her dress, and the horse perked up even more; he loved apples. His face quickly shot out and grabbed the apple from the princess, and within a few seconds, it was gone.

Rapunzel giggled. "Come on, you glutton, let's get moving."

She opened the stable door, mounted the horse, and they took off. Just before they did, Rapunzel remembered to put her hood up.

She rode away from the castle, down through the town, across the bridge, and into the nearby forest, where Miss Gothel's house was. Actually, no one knew of its location except her (and Maximus, of course)—the woman had insisted that she wanted her privacy, and Rapunzel was quite willing to respect that. Everyone back at the castle knew that she lived in the forest, and had a general idea of where in the forest, but remained ignorant of the specifics.

And the place was not easy to find. It lay behind a wall of ivy that, at first glance, didn't seem to have anything behind it other than rock. A searcher who didn't know the exact location would probably not think to look there. But Rapunzel knew. And so, when she came to the wall of ivy, she dismounted and led Maximus through. The two walked through the small cave that followed. "Thanks, Maximus," she said once they were at the mouth of the cave's exit. "I'll be back soon, okay?"

Maximus nodded, and sat himself down, as he usually did, right inside the cave but still able to keep Rapunzel in his sight—for Miss Gothel's home was just a little beyond the cave, right next to a beautiful waterfall. It was an odd place, though, for anyone to live: a tall, thin tower, with a single window and a couple of rooms at the top. And, at first glance, there appeared to be no way up…but Miss Gothel had shown Rapunzel a secret entrance at the base that they could use.

Rapunzel walked towards the tower, noticing a figure clad in red near the base. "Miss Gothel!" she called.

The figure turned, and Rapunzel saw the face of her friend. Miss Gothel had a shrewd face, one that suggested, she knew a lot, and that some people might find disconcerting. But the princess had grown used to it over the years, and was able to see the kindness in it.

Miss Gothel smiled. "Rapunzel! How good to see you!" She walked over, her black wavy hair flowing behind her.

The two reached each other and embraced. "Well," said Miss Gothel, pulling away and examining Rapunzel at arm's length, "how does your last day of being seventeen feel?"

"Oh, you know," said Rapunzel. "I'll be sad to say goodbye to it…but I can't say I'm not excited about turning eighteen."

Miss Gothel smiled at her. "Yes, of course." She brushed some of the golden hair back. "You're growing up to be quite a lovely young woman."

Rapunzel blushed slightly. "Aw, thanks, Miss Gothel."

"But I should stop talking to myself. Come, let's head upstairs, and you can tell me all about what's going on."

Rapunzel nodded in agreement, though a little put off by her last comment, and followed the older woman to the base of the tower, where she parted some of the ivy and pulled back a few stones to reveal the secret entrance. The two made their way up the long staircase, to where Miss Gothel opened a trapdoor that led to a large room that functioned as a combination of a living room, kitchen, and activity room.

Miss Gothel patted Rapunzel's hair lightly. "Firstly, let's get this free. You know how much I love playing with your hair."

Rapunzel did know, and the two of them began undoing the braids. Finally, her hair came free, all seventy feet of it. "How nice," said Miss Gothel.

The two took their usual seats, with Miss Gothel sitting behind Rapunzel so she could enjoy her hair. "Well, Miss Gothel," said Rapunzel, "I'm really—"

"One moment, dear," Miss Gothel interrupted. "What about your song? You know how much I love hearing it."

"Oh, right, of course," said Rapunzel. She took a breath. "_Flower, gleam and glow, let your power shine. Make the clock reverse, bring back what once was mine. Heal what has been hurt, change the fate design. Save what has been lost, bring back what once was mine._"

As she sung, her hair glowed, and while she couldn't see it, several wrinkles on Miss Gothel's face disappeared, as well as some on her hands. Grey hairs that had spouted up became black once more. When she had finished, Miss Gothel let out a satisfied sigh. "Thank you, dear. You sing that song quite well."

Rapunzel smiled. "Well, you were the one who taught it to me."

It was true—in fact, Miss Gothel was the one who had taught Rapunzel that her hair had magical healing properties. It had been one day when she was six. Rapunzel had been playing outdoors near the castle when a strange woman had approached her and the guards. "Is that the princess?" the woman had said.

The guard nearest had nodded. "Yes, this is Rapunzel."

"The one with the powers of the magic flower?"

That had caught the guards' attention. "What?"

"Oh, it's a remarkable thing. You see, I know a lot about this flower, the one that healed the queen. As it turns out that, in taking it while she was pregnant, the queen transferred its power to her daughter."

"So…you're saying that Rapunzel now has some sort of healing powers?"

"Oh, yes. And what's more, I know how to use them."

"What? You do?"

"Yes. Here, let me show you."

The guards had been skeptical, and somewhat unwilling to let this strange woman near the princess. But, eventually, curiosity got the better of them, and they watched attentively as the woman took Rapunzel's hair and sang to it, then showed them a small cut on her arm that the hair managed to heal. The guards had been astounded, and took this news up to the king and queen right away, both of whom could hardly believe such a thing. The strange woman, who introduced herself as Miss Gothel, was thanked—but she had said that, in return, she would like to spend some time with the young princess often, as her house in the forest did not offer many opportunities for companionship. There had been some reluctance to allow this—particularly on the part of Captain Julius, who insisted that he didn't like the feel of the stranger—but the arrangement was eventually agreed to, with some conditions. As Rapunzel grew older, the conditions lessened, and she became more free to visit Miss Gothel whenever the solitary woman desired company. When she asked why Miss Gothel didn't move somewhere else where there were more people, the dark-haired woman simply replied that it was for her own reasons, and she did not wish to talk about it.

Which was how Rapunzel came to be sitting with her friend in her tower, singing and talking to her. That day, they talked about Rapunzel's upcoming birthday, for which the princess was nothing but excited. Miss Gothel made some comments, but mostly kept to herself, letting Rapunzel do the talking. Well, until one point in the conversation. "You know what this also means," said the dark-haired woman. "Now that you're eighteen, you'll have a few men coming to visit you."

"Oh…yes, I suppose that's true," said Rapunzel. "But—"

"You need to be careful," continued Miss Gothel, acting as if Rapunzel had not spoken. "There are men out there who would take advantage of you in a moment, given the chance. They would love to one day be king of Corona, and there's nothing they won't do." She leaned in slightly. "They may try to win you over with kind words, or gestures. But never forget that it could be an act." She shook her head sadly. "I remember when I had men that showed interest in me. I thought they were sincere, but they turned out to be selfish and cruel…like so many of their kind."

"I-I'm sorry, Miss Gothel," said Rapunzel. "But there are plenty of men who aren't bad people. For instance, there's—"

"Oh, I'm sure there are _some_," said Miss Gothel, interrupting again. "But I've found that, at their hearts, too many men just don't have the warmth that you and I do."

She sighed, and Rapunzel felt uncomfortable enough that she changed the subject. She was sure that Miss Gothel meant well, but she wasn't going to start distrusting every man she met. Still, it did make her think. It _was_ possible that she would receive that kind of attention from people…and how would she tell when they were being sincere?

But soon, or so it seemed, her time was up and she had to return to the castle. "Great to see you again, Miss Gothel," said Rapunzel, as her friend re-braided her hair.

"Oh, my pleasure," said Miss Gothel. "Well, then, run along…and I'll see you when you're eighteen!"

Rapunzel smiled in delight at the thought, then took her leave.

* * *

Mother Gothel watched the girl from her window until she had put her cloak back on, feeling slightly more relieved. The last thing she needed was for someone else to recognize her and try to kidnap her…

She was in a bad mood. Listening to the naïve young princess and pretending to enjoy it never pleased her, but this time, something else was bothering her.

She looked down at her hand where, barely visible but still there, a wrinkle was beginning to form. "No…" she hissed. "Why is it not working as well anymore?"

When Mother Gothel had started meeting with the princess, the magic from her hair had been able to last about a month, so the two only had to see each other once every month. But recently, the effect had started to last for less time, so much so that Mother Gothel insisted that their meetings become biweekly instead. But now, even that wasn't good enough…

This whole charade had gone on for long enough. Gothel wished she could have just kidnapped the princess, back when she had first met her and the guards had been busy gazing in slack-jawed awe at her capabilities…but the perfect opportunity just hadn't seemed to present itself. Besides, she'd rather not have her face all over the Wanted posters, if she could help it. Still, there had to be some way to keep Rapunzel close at all times and use her hair's healing powers. Some way that wouldn't be too risky…

She scowled, and silently cursed the captain of the guard who had stopped her that one night, eighteen years ago. Thankfully, he had gotten what he deserved just about a year ago, but now his son had taken over the position, and from what the sorceress heard, they were largely cut from the same cloth. It was possible that she would end up having to find some way of dealing with him…

But, no matter what, she was determined to keep the power that she had had for so long. The only reason that she could think of for the sun to grow a magic golden flower right near her was that the heavens wanted her to find it, to use its power and become the first human to realize the gift of immortality. Now, however, that entire scenario was in jeopardy. But if the heavens decreed it, then it would be done. She would find a way. No matter what it was.


	4. The Party

**A/N: This is a long chapter, but (I think) it's a good one. So just bear with me.**

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

The next day was the big party, and, of course, it was a huge success. From the moment the sun rose, people were out in the streets, enjoying the festivities that took place throughout the entire town. There was food, music, and dancing, and many local merchants took to the streets to sell their wares, with much success.

Rapunzel herself came down to the town, much to the delight of the citizens, escorted by Marcus, also much to the delight of the citizens (especially the ones who loved to gossip, and knew of the supposed planned engagement between the captain and the princess—though they didn't see any ring on the latter's finger, no matter how hard they looked). She had an excellent time, often stopping to chat with the people, sing with them, or even dance with them. One dance had so many people involved in it, it was hard to even see Rapunzel in the crowd. "Uh, Captain," said one of the guards assigned to the princess, "shouldn't we be making sure the princess is in our sight at all times?"

Marcus shrugged. "She's not too far away. And no one would be dumb enough to try something with all these people here."

"Are you sure? There are some people who might…"

Marcus turned to the other guard. "William, if we worried about absolutely every possible misfortune that could befall the princess, we'd have our souls sucked dry. Besides, I can see the people around her, and none of them look like they mean harm to anyone."

"But…"

Marcus cut him off. "Look, William, I appreciate your concern. But it's her birthday. She deserves to have some fun." He gave the other guard a slightly apologetic look. "Besides, you know how hard it is to restrain her."

"That is true," William admitted. "Well, if you think it's all right, sir."

"I think it's quite fine," said Marcus. "We were sent out here to keep her protected, not spoil this great day of her life."

"I…I wasn't trying to spoil it, sir."

"No, I know you weren't, and I'm sorry if I came across that way." Marcus looked up at the sun. "In fact, it's almost time for the second group of guards to arrive. Why don't you take off early and enjoy the festival?"

William blinked, then straightened himself. "Thank you, sir, but my duty is to remain with you until I am officially relieved."

Marcus smiled. "If you insist. But do make sure you get some time to enjoy yourself before the day is over."

"Yes, sir. Thank you."

* * *

Marcus remained to look after Rapunzel for the remainder of the day—fortunately able to enjoy some of what the festival had to offer himself—until the sun began to fall, at which time people began to make their way towards the boats—for, upon Rapunzel's birth, the king and queen had launched a floating lantern into the sky, and now it became tradition for the entire town to do the same, often from the lake surrounding the town. Marcus and Rapunzel, however, went a different way, back to the castle, as the king, queen, and princess always released the first lantern from there. As they approached, however, Marcus led them away from the main entrance, angling more towards the stables. "Uh, Marcus?" said Rapunzel. "Where are we going?"

"Just something quick before the lanterns," said the captain.

"What?"

He turned back to her. "Well, I need to give you your birthday present, and I thought this was the best time."

She was slightly taken aback. "Oh! Thanks!"

He raised an eyebrow. "What, you thought I'd forgotten? It's kind of hard to forget your birthday when the entire kingdom throws a huge celebration."

"No, but…" Rapunzel stopped talking upon seeing a pair of guards lead was was clearly a horse covered in a sheet their way. "Is that…Maximus?" she said.

"Ah, you guessed!" said Marcus. "And I wanted it to be a surprise…well, anyway." He waved to the guards and they took the sheet off the horse, who didn't seem thrilled that he had been covered up in such a way. "Happy birthday. He's essentially been yours for a while, but I thought I'd make it official."

Rapunzel gasped. "You mean…"

Marcus nodded. "Maximus is your horse now."

She smiled delightedly at him. "Thank you, Marcus!" She hugged him, quickly but tightly, and ran over to Maximus, who perked up upon seeing her coming his way. "How about that, boy?"

Maximus whinnied happily and nuzzled her, earning a laugh. "Are you sure you won't miss him?" she asked, turning back to Marcus.

"Don't worry about me," he replied. "I've had my eye on another horse for a little while, anyway, so it's no big sacrifice."

Both princess and horse looked at him almost with almost affronted expressions, and he quickly spoke again. "Sorry, that's not what I meant. He's a great horse; always has been for both me and my father. But he's a better match for you than for me."

Rapunzel smiled again. "Well, thank you again, Marcus." She rubbed Maximus's nose. "I'll be sure to take very good care of him."

"I'm sure you will." He looked up at the sky. "Unfortunately, you'd better get inside; it's almost time."

Rapunzel gave Maximus an almost longing look. "I'll be down to see you first thing tomorrow, okay?" She patted him one more time, then followed Marcus into the castle, while the guards who had led Maximus out brought him back to the stable.

"See you soon," said Marcus, when Rapunzel left him to join her parents. She nodded and walked off, and he turned and walked down another hallway. Unfortunately, he had to miss out on the lanterns to check on his men—there might have been a small chance that something was going to happen tonight, but it was a chance, and a good captain did everything he could to make those chances as small as possible.

Rapunzel, meanwhile, quickly checked her appearance—a more formal dress than her usual attire, shoes (unfortunately), and her crown. She adjusted it on her head, noting that it was one of the few times that she actually wore the thing. Usually, it was kept hidden in a small chamber in the castle, for which she had the key, but today was one of the days when she got it out. It was pretty, and she thought she looked nice wearing it—but it was also very valuable, and there was the fear that wearing it too much would make her a target. So, for most of the time, it remained locked away. But not now.

Satisfied that she was presentable, she strode out of her room and made her way towards the balcony where she would meet her parents. They greeted her as always with warm hugs, and then the royal trio walked towards the lantern that waited for them on a small table. As it was her birthday, Rapunzel had the honor of lighting it, and they watched it as it rose, glowing, into the sky, soon followed by hundreds more from the town and surrounding lake.

It was a sight that never failed to fascinate the princess, even if it had been an annual tradition for eighteen years. Watching all of the lights coming together, casting a glow on everything below them. She could watch it for hours (though, unfortunately, it didn't last that long).

A sniffling sound next to her made her turn, and she was slightly surprised to see a tear running down her father's face. "Dad?" she said. "Are you okay?"

The king sniffed again, but smiled and nodded. "I…I'm just thinking about how lucky we are to have you, Rapunzel."

His comment made her start to choke up as well, but she managed to smile back and say, "Thanks, Dad." She put an arm around him. "And I'll always be here."

Her mother joined them, and the three huddled together as the lanterns continued to rise, up farther and farther into the sky, and eventually out of sight.

A few moments after the last floating light had disappeared from view, they began to move back inside. "I'm afraid we can't keep everyone in the ballroom waiting," said the queen.

Rapunzel fought back a sigh. This was the part of her birthday she had been less looking forward to. There would be a lot of formality, both in actions as well as behavior in general. But there would be some people there that she knew—Marcus, for one—so she supposed she could get through.

"But…" said the king, cutting into Rapunzel's thoughts, "I think we can take a few more minutes for something." He smiled. "We are the king and queen, after all. I'm sure the people in the ballroom can wait a little longer."

His wife nodded in agreement. "Yes," she said, and looked at Rapunzel. "We had some trouble thinking of what to get you for your birthday, but we thought you might like to get out a little more."

"And," said the king, "we know how much you love to paint, so we thought it would be nice to give you an opportunity to do so in a way you haven't before."

"So," the queen said, "we've decided to take a family trip—all three of us—to the Viridian Cliffs for a few days."

Rapunzel's eyes widened. The Viridian Cliffs was one of the most beautiful locations for miles, but her duties and parents' concern for her protection had kept her from going.

Until now. "The Viridian Cliffs? Seriously?"

Her father nodded. "Seriously. We won't be able to be away for too long, but we're confident that the royal advisors and guards will be able to hold the fort while we are gone."

"That…that's wonderful!" Rapunzel threw herself forward and put her arms around both her parents. "Thank you so much!"

They hugged her back. "We're glad you like it," said the queen.

"I do! I'm so excited! When do we go?"

The king cleared his throat. "Well, unfortunately, it won't be for a little while; we have to make sure everything is settled here. But we're confident we can head out in a couple weeks or so."

Rapunzel nodded. It was longer than she would have liked to wait ideally…but a trip to the Viridian Cliffs was something to wait for. "Okay, I can wait."

Her father patted her on the shoulder affectionately. "Thank you." He looked beyond her, into the castle. "But now…we really should get going."

* * *

Several minutes later, the three entered the ballroom, where several people were already milling about. They had had to stop to put away their crowns—with so many people in the ballroom and the crowns being so valuable, it had been deemed to risky to wear them. So Rapunzel and her parents had handed them off to servants who had them immediately secured in their respective locations. They didn't really need them, anyway—everyone knew who they were.

A fact illustrated by how they were swarmed by nobles, royal advisors, and other people who worked in the castle, who wished to give their birthday greetings to the princess (all at the same time, of course). Rapunzel found herself struggling to respond to all of them—as soon as she began to thank one of them, another began talking to her, and she had to turn her attention to whomever it was. Even when the music started, and people began to dance, she found herself having to deal with a throng of people. She was just starting to think of making some excuse to go somewhere else when a voice right behind her said, "Good evening, princess."

She turned and smiled upon seeing Marcus, still clad in his guard uniform (and trademark red cape). "Hi, Marcus!" she said.

Marcus turned to the crowd of people in front of her. "Would you mind if I borrowed her for a moment?"

Everyone insisted that they didn't mind at all, and Marcus led Rapunzel towards the dance floor. "May I have this dance?" he asked with an exaggerated bow.

"You may," said Rapunzel.

They danced for a few seconds before Marcus broke the silence. "I feel like that was kind of a dirty trick."

Rapunzel frowned. "What?"

Marcus jerked his head towards the group of people that had just surrounded the princess. "I kind of exploited the rumors about us to get you away from them."

"Rumors?"

He gave her a look. "Surely you've heard."

"Oh, right, those…but how did you exploit them?"

He grinned. "People are a lot more willing to relinquish a young woman's company to someone whom they're hoping to see marry her."

"Hoping?"

"Oh, yes. I'm quite sure that many people are waiting with baited breath for us to announce our engagement."

Rapunzel went slightly red. "Kinda makes me feel put on the spot…"

Marcus shrugged. "You don't have to do anything for them."

"That's not a very nice thing to say."

"Then let me amend it: you don't have to do anything for them in this regard specifically."

"Well, yes, I knew that."

"Good." He glanced around. "Though we have drawn a lot of attention…"

Rapunzel looked around, too. It was true: even though not every face was turned towards them, it was clear that the majority of people in the room were focused on the young couple. "Great…"

"Hey, just ignore them. This whole thing will probably pass soon, anyway."

She frowned. "How can you be sure?"

"Because people's expectations have grown a lot recently. They'll want something to happen soon, and when it doesn't, they'll start asking questions. Then, they'll find out the truth. And while they may complain, they'll get over it."

"You think so?"

"Sure."

Rapunzel thought for a moment. "Hey, why haven't we told anyone yet?"

"Well, your parents know."

"They do?"

"Yeah. Actually," he lowered his voice, "your father asked to see me a couple days ago about this very subject."

"What? He did?"

"Yup. He said he just wanted to make sure of the situation. I told him what was up."

Rapunzel frowned. "I'm not sure if that was any of his business…"

"I'm sure he had his reasons. And please don't get mad at him—he actually told me I didn't need to tell you about it."

"Then why did you?"

He shrugged. "It came up."

"No, you brought it up."

"The topic came up."

"But you didn't have to tell me about that specifically."

He shrugged. "Well, then, I guess I've betrayed the king's confidence." He adopted a pleading expression. "Please don't tell anyone."

She giggled. "I suppose I won't." Her smiled vanished. "But seriously, why do we keep leading everyone on?"

"I wouldn't say we're leading them on…"

"We're letting them think something that's not true."

"I suppose." He thought. "I guess—for me, at least—it's a combination of never having the topic directly breached with me—except with your father—and that it's almost amusing to see them making these conjectures."

She blinked. "Amusing?"

"Yeah, kinda." He raised an eyebrow. "What, does it make me sound like a jerk?"

"A little. These are real people, Marcus, not our playthings."

He twitched slightly, and looked like he was about to make a retort, but stopped. "Yeah…guess I've never really thought about it."

"Well, let's put these rumors to rest, then." She looked at him expectedly. "Once and for all."

He sighed, knowing that she could be tough and stubborn when she wanted to. "Oh, all right." His eyes went to the crowd of people around them. "But…maybe not until after tonight? Just in case I need to get you out of another jam."

She raised an eyebrow. "That's not very moral."

"Well, how about that I don't want to bring their spirits crashing down tonight? It's a celebration; let people be happy."

Rapunzel turned this idea over in her head for a minute, then conceded. "All right, fine. But just for tonight."

He nodded. "Deal."

* * *

After they had finished dancing, they parted ways (to the noticeable surprise of a few onlookers). Rapunzel avoided the crowd and made her way towards her parents, while Marcus wandered around, saying hello to familiar faces—or, in some cases, familiar faces said hello to him. "Hello, Captain Marcus!" said one woman, a round-faced, middle-aged noble with a bright expression.

Marcus gave a slight bow. "Good evening, Lady Olive."

"I'm surprised to see you all by yourself out here! Shouldn't you be with the princess?"

"The princess can have some time to herself."

"But…" She lowered her voice. "You _are_ going to do it tonight, aren't you?"

Marcus blinked. "Huh?"

"You know what I'm talking about. Everyone's expecting it, you know."

"Oh, I…er…"

Lady Olive held up a hand. "No, you're right, I shouldn't inquire. I'll merely find out when the time comes, hm?" She flashed him a wink, then walked off to speak with another acquaintance.

Marcus scratched his head kind of sheepishly. Now that he thought about it, here was another reason he hadn't broken the truth to anyone—they didn't give him much of an opportunity. They might say something about it, but when he didn't respond immediately, they took it as shyness, excused him from saying anything, and either walked away or changed the subject—but they always had that glint in their eyes. They were too excited to let him speak, really. Although…maybe that was another reason to let people know. Sure, Lady Olive's actions could be thought back on with some amusement…but the longer people didn't know the truth, the more their excitement would continue to build, and it would just be that much worse when it came crashing down.

But…they did deserve to know. And they deserved to be excited when Rapunzel finally did get engaged—to someone who was just right for her. He—and she—both knew that he was not that person.

Not that that was disappointing to him. Sure, the possibility of them having a future together had _ever_ crossed his mind, but it hadn't stuck, really. He had never really seriously thought of himself as anything more than the princess's good childhood friend. And…people would be disappointed when they found that out. Unfortunate, but unavoidable. And like he had said to Rapunzel, they'd get over it eventually.

A familiar voice brought him out of his reverie, and he looked up to see Sir Thatch and Tara standing a few feet away, conversing with each other. Smiling as he remembered their encounter the previous day, he walked up to them.

"…but if Sir Rinvy tries to pull something like that again, I will personally take all of his high-and-mighty credentials and stick them right up his—" Sir Thatch broke off upon seeing Marcus approaching. "Oh, Captain Marcus! Good evening!"

Marcus smiled at him, still amused by what he had overheard (but not too surprised; he knew of some intense rivalries in the academic communities). "Good evening, Sir Thatch." He turned to Tara, who had spun around as soon as Sir Thatch had said his name. "And you as well, Tara."

"G-good evening, sir," said Tara, dropping into a curtsey.

"You both enjoying the evening?" asked Marcus.

"Oh, quite," said Thatch. "It is indeed a merry occasion. Though," he frowned slightly, "when are you going to go ahead and do it, Captain? You can't keep everyone waiting too long."

Marcus frowned, knowing what he was referring to. "That's rather direct, Sir Thatch."

"I am merely speaking my mind. As well as the minds of the majority of the guests here."

Marcus surveyed them both, feeling rather scrutinized, and thought about changing his agreement with Rapunzel—maybe tonight _wasn't_ too early to reveal the truth. "Actually…" he started to say. Then, he broke off as his eyes caught on Tara. "Tara? Are you okay?"

The bookkeeper, who had been looking somewhat pale and sweaty, blinked. "Oh…no, I'm fine, sir."

"Are you sure? You look like you could use some air, or something."

"No, I'll be all right."

Thatch peered at her. "You do look like you could use some moving about, girl," he said. "Here, the next dance is about to begin. Perhaps it would do you some good."

Tara looked around timidly. "Well…I don't have anyone to dance with."

"You can dance with me," said the older man. "I still have some life in my body."

Tara nodded slowly. "O…oka—"

"May I interject?"

Both Thatch and Tara turned to Marcus. "Yes, Captain?" said Thatch.

The captain went on. "If she needs a dance partner…" He extended his hand towards her. "I would be happy to oblige."

Tara's eyes widened, and Thatch frowned. "Are you sure that's a good idea, Captain Marcus?"

"I am quite sure."

"But…the princess…"

"The princess will not object," said Marcus firmly. He turned to Tara. "Well?"

Tara nodded, though her eyes were still as large as dinner plates. Almost hesitantly, she extended her hand, and he took it and led her to the dance floor. Seconds later, a new song began, and the pair began to dance, though Tara stumbled a bit at the beginning. "Whoa, careful," said Marcus.

"Sorry, sir," she said.

She was still extremely tensed up, though. Marcus could guess why—he was a well-known figure in the castle, and he suspected that getting the opportunity to dance with him might have an intimidation factor. Not to mention the fact that he was pretty good-looking, if he could say so himself. He had noticed the ways in which a lot of women looked at him. "Relax a bit, Tara," he said. "This is a fun occasion. Is it not?"

She smiled lightly. "Yes…yes, it is."

They danced in silence for a minute, then Tara caught a glimpse of something over Marcus's shoulder and immediately went red and turned away. "What was that?" said Marcus.

"Nothing," she said, but Marcus had already turned to look. Several people were watching the two of them dance…but their expressions were much different from the ones he had seen while dancing with Rapunzel. Aside from the very few unconcerned expressions, they ranged from mildly disapproving to somewhat shocked to outright angry, with a few throwing glares in Tara's direction.

Anger flared up inside of Marcus, and he put it into his own expression, glaring right back at them. Not expecting that kind of response from him, evidently, they turned away, some muttering. But Marcus was not satisfied. So, not only did these rumors raise false hopes, but they brought down anger on any other girl that Marcus just _danced_ with? They were worse than he thought—but he'd admit, he hadn't really looked into them, mostly regarding them as somewhat amusing. Evidently, though, they weren't. They did have to be stopped.

He turned back to his dance partner. "Never mind them, Tara," he said.

"Well, but…forgive me, sir, but I don't want to seem like I'm coming between you and the prin—"

"Tara." He paused, thinking for a second, then went on. "Tara, would you like to know a secret?"

She raised her eyebrows. "A secret, sir?"

He nodded. "A pretty big one. One that's going to come out into the open in the next few hours."

Her eyes widened. "What?" She seemed to catch herself. "Unless you don't want to tell me, don't feel like you have to."

"I don't. But I want to." He took a breath, then leaned down very slightly. "Tara, there is nothing romantic going on between me and Rapunzel." He paused for a moment. "People have just assumed there is, and it's gotten blown up over time. Actually, even more so than I realized. But it's not true."

She was obviously stunned. "It…it's not?"

He shook his head. "Nope. We're great friends, sure…but neither of us has any interest in being anything more."

She was still staring at him as though she expected to wake up, or him to smile and say, "Just kidding!" "So…there never has been?" she asked quietly.

"No, not really."

She remained silent for a while longer, which Marcus thought odd. Sure, he had expected the news to be surprising, but not _that_ surprising…

He continued speaking. "But people have gotten hopeful. Too hopeful, almost." He sighed. "And we're going to have to bring their hopes down." He turned back to her. "Sorry if I did that to you. I just thought it would be good if you knew the truth."

"No…thank you," she said, still quietly. "I'm just…processing it, that's all."

He nodded. "Fair enough." They danced for another few seconds, then he added, "And you don't have to feel like you're sworn to secrecy. Like I said, we'll be telling people tomorrow, or even tonight."

She nodded, and they lapsed back into silence, continuing the rest of the dance without speaking. Marcus wanted to break the silence…but something told him that it would be better to not do so. So he kept quiet, up until the end of the dance, which had something of a grand finish. "Thank you for the dance," he said, making Tara blink. "You're pretty good."

"Thank you, sir."

Marcus found himself looking around the room, despite the fact that his partner was right in front of him. "Well, I…"

He broke off as he saw Rapunzel slipping out of the crowded room, onto the outside balcony. He only briefly got a look at her face, but it looked like something was troubling her. At first, he thought it might just be that the formality of everything was a little overbearing—but, upon thinking further, he decided it seemed like more than that. "Um…" He turned back to Tara. "Excuse me. Thank you again."

"Of course, sir."

He made his way out to the balcony, people parting on either side of him. He allowed himself a moment of feeling grand—people parting to let him pass, his cape billowing behind him—before he reached the exit to the balcony. His serious demeanor took over, and he opened the doors.

* * *

Rapunzel couldn't help a sigh as she looked out, leaning on the railing. It was a beautiful view of the surrounding town and lake, but it didn't help her mood.

She didn't fully understand it. It was her eighteenth birthday, an event that she had been excited for for a long time. She had received wonderful and thoughtful gifts from her parents and her best friend, and the room behind her was full of well-wishers. Yet…something still wasn't right.

"Everything okay out here?"

Rapunzel turned at the sound of Marcus's voice. "Oh, Marcus!" she said. "What are you doing out here?"

He walked up next to her. "Saw you leaving, and you looked troubled. Anything going on?"

She sighed. "I'm not sure."

They stood in silence for a few minutes (a notable feat for him) before Rapunzel spoke again. "I feel…I dunno, kind of dissatisfied."

"Dissatisfied?"

"I know it sounds silly. I mean, what do I have to be dissatisfied about?" She gestured to the castle behind them. "I'm a princess. I live in a beautiful castle, with loving parents and great friends. I have people to do almost everything for me, and I can have almost anything I want." She turned to him. "I'm going to the Viridian Cliffs, Marcus, and…well, no, I'm still really excited about that. But…it's just like…something seems missing."

"Huh," said Marcus. "Missing how? Or what?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. It's like…everything's so ordered, there's not much room for freedom. I feel like there's so much I haven't done. Almost like…my life hasn't even really begun yet." She looked at him. "You know what I'm saying?"

"Uh…"

She raised an eyebrow. "You love it here, don't you?"

"Well…kinda, yeah." He scratched his head. "But I guess…I guess if you're dissatisfied, then you have to go out and find what makes you satisfied."

"But what _is_ that?"

"I don't know. Whatever you find. Just, ah, as long as it's not anything too rash." When she gave him a look, he said, "What? You've totally done rash things in the past."

"And you haven't?"

He paused. "Fair point."

She looked back out at the view. "So…how would I go about looking?"

"However you want to, I guess. Whatever feels right."

Rapunzel thought for a moment. It was true, she didn't feel completely satisfied. But…maybe she could do something about that. Maybe there was something out there that was just right for her. All she had to do was find it. "I'll try that. Thanks, Marcus."

He smiled. "No problem. Always happy to help."

They stayed out for a couple more minutes before Rapunzel said, "Well, I guess we'd better head back in."

"Sure," said Marcus. "You feeling all right, then?"

She smiled at him. "I think I am."

They took a few steps towards the door. Then, Marcus stopped. "Wait," he said. "Oh…good grief."

Rapunzel turned back to him. "What?"

"I didn't even think about this, but…I'll bet you anything that almost everyone in there thinks I'm out here proposing to you."

"What?" said Rapunzel, a little flustered. "Proposing?"

"Sure. It's the ideal setting; alone on the balcony, overlooking a great view, the night of your eighteenth birthday…"

She shook her head. "We do need to stop all these rumors."

"I've actually come to agree wholeheartedly with you."

She blinked. "Really?"

"Yeah. I think…I just didn't really understand the magnitude of their effect." He paused for a second. "I told Tara, actually."

"Tara?"

"Yeah. I was dancing with her, and, well, the subject came up."

"And you didn't bring it up?"

"Well, maybe I did. But I just thought she should know the truth."

She gave him an odd look. "What?" he asked.

"Nothing." She sighed and gestured towards the doors. "Well, shall we do it, then?"

"I suppose."

She started towards the door, then stopped right in front of it when she saw that Marcus wasn't with her. She turned around…to see him down on one knee. "You _cannot_ be serious," she said.

He gave her an innocent look. "What? I saw a very interesting-looking spider on the floor and wanted to get a closer look at it."

She held his gaze for a minute, then said, "You're hopeless."

He grinned as he got to his feet. "Sorry. Couldn't resist."

She shook her head at him. Marcus was her best friend, but sometimes be could just be…well, at least she knew that he was behind her in this matter. Unlike many of the other people back inside…

Taking a breath, she turned and opened the doors.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, a large group of people was waiting outside the door, and upon Rapunzel opening it, all their eyes went to her. Marcus noticed (not without some more amusement, admittedly) that they seemed to not know what to make of her coming out with him just behind her. Most likely, they were expecting them to come out arm-in-arm, or, in the unlikely case that she had refused him, her to come out by herself, leaving him on the balcony.

However, after the crowd had gotten a good look at Rapunzel's hand, and deduced that there was no ring on it, they came to a decision about what must have happened. Immediately, the throng of people descended on Marcus, offering condolences and bewilderment that she had not accepted. He sighed and put up his hands. "No…look, everyone…"

"What reason would she have to turn him down?" said one of the people in the crowd.

"I don't know," someone else said.

"Let's ask her," a third said, and before Marcus could blink, they had turned away from him and moved in on Rapunzel, now pestering her with comments about how he was such a good man, and did she need more time to think, and how they—people who clearly didn't know either of them well—were so sure they would be happy together.

Marcus scowled, and made his way over to them, as Rapunzel tried to fend them off. "Hey!" he yelled, his voice carrying through nearly the entire ballroom.

Fortunately, he seemed to still have enough authority for people to listen to him, as numerous faces turned his way, and kept their mouths shut. "Look," he said. "You guys have got it all wrong."

"She did accept, then?" said Lady Olive.

"_No!_" said Marcus, as the chatter began to rise again. "Just listen for one second, will you?"

They looked at him attentively. "All right," said Marcus. "Here's what's going on. We should have made this public a long time ago, and we apologize, but—"

"Oh, you didn't have to make it public," said Lady Olive, smiling.

"You have no idea what you are talking about," said Marcus, his tone stinging. He couldn't help it; these people were a lot worse than what he had expected. As Lady Olive shrunk back, he continued. "This is the truth, and you're going to have to accept it. I hate to ruin your good moods…"

"Captain Marcus!"

Marcus blinked, and turned to see William making his way towards him, his face worried. "Uh, so I'll let Rapunzel do it," he finished—he could tell that William had news that would require his attention.

As everyone turned to Rapunzel—who did not look happy about her new responsibility—Marcus walked over to William. "What's going on?"

William looked at the crowd. "I'm sorry to interrupt you, Captain, but—"

"Never mind that. What is it?"

William took a breath. "We've got trouble, sir."

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: Next chapter: another familiar face.**

**So, what do you think so far? Let me know what you like or don't like. (It will make me happy.)**


	5. The Heist

Flynn Rider was feeling pretty good about himself at the moment.

His plan had been simple, yet it had worked brilliantly: sneak into the castle when everyone was watching the lanterns, conceal themselves in the right place, and wait for the right time. The guards who were supposed to watch the entrances had fallen prey to the sight of the floating lanterns, and had let their attention slip. Flynn, by contrast, was completely focused on the task at hand—he had seen the lanterns before, and could see them again. But this opportunity was once-in-a-lifetime.

Even though he had (correctly) anticipated that the guards would be distracted, he had chosen a window that was rather inconspicuous and for which it would be difficult to spot three men sneaking in, especially at night. It required a bit of a climb, but nothing he couldn't handle. The view was nice, too. Maybe he'd get a castle of his own someday…

Well, such thoughts could wait. He hadn't become the most wanted and successful thief in all of Corona by getting sidetracked. He made plans, followed them through, and got out of there.

After he and his partners had slipped into the castle, they had made their way through the hallways (pausing once or twice to stuff an unfortunate guard into a nearby closet), found a good spot to wait, and waited. Flynn did wish that he could have found some partners who were more patient, but they had been willing to infiltrate the castle with him, and he couldn't ignore that they were two of the most infamous criminals in the area for good reason. They were pretty intimidating, too, both tall and muscular with killer scowls and evidence of past skirmishes: both had scars on their face, and one had an eye patch. And, like Flynn, they both devoted themselves entirely to their task at hand. Yep, the Stabbington brothers were, all in all, a good pick to accompany him. (Especially since it had been them that had done and would do the actual rough stuff.)

Finally, the three heard a set of footsteps drawing near. Carefully, Flynn looked out, and saw exactly what he had hoped to see. There were three men walking in their direction; two guards on either side of a rather frail-looking servant. And the servant was carrying a soft purple pillow, upon which…it lay.

Flynn had to fight back a shudder of excitement. He ducked back into his hiding place and nodded once to the other two. A moment later, they leapt out, right in front of the guards. The unfortunate pair had not been expecting anything, and so barely had any time to react at all before the Stabbington brothers knocked them out with a couple quick punches to the jaw. The servant carrying the pillow had frozen up at first, but upon seeing his escort felled, turned around and prepared to bolt—only to find himself face-to-face with the legendary thief himself. "Hey," Flynn said casually.

The servant opened his mouth to cry out…but was silenced by another blow from one of the brothers (the one with the eye patch, whom Flynn had nicknamed One-Eye—though he never called him that to his face). "C'mon, Rider," said the other brother (Two-Eye, in Flynn's mind). "Grab the crown and let's get out of here."

Flynn grinned. "Right-o." Quickly, he swooped down and snatched the object that still sat on top of the pillow: the princess's crown. It was nothing _too_ extravagant, but it was quite possibly the most valuable object in the entire castle. He didn't question why; he just knew that stealing this thing would make him very, very rich. After slipping it into a nondescript brown satchel, he straightened up. "Let's go, guys."

After making a quick attempt to conceal the unconscious guards and servant, Flynn and the Stabbington brothers made a beeline for the exit, swiftly but silently—though Flynn expected the guards would catch on sooner or later. They weren't a stellar bunch (fortunately for him), but they weren't a bunch of bumbling idiots, either. Especially Captain Marcus—he was someone to watch out for. Luckily, however, Flynn didn't hear the alarm go off until after he and the brothers had climbed down the castle. He grinned. By the time the guards got themselves organized and gave pursuit, they'd be gone.

Or so he thought. Right as the three were nearing the end of the bridge that connected the town and the nearby forest, he heard hooves, and turned to see a group of mounted guards giving chase. "That was quicker than I expected," he muttered. "Well, time to speed things up, then."

He put on an extra burst of speed, which his partners copied, and they made it into the forest. This was good; it would be a lot easier to lose them in there. Still not easy, but easier. He knew the forest pretty well, having spent a lot of time there, and the darkness would make things harder to see for his pursuers.

Unfortunately, the same thing held for himself and the Stabbington brothers. Soon after they had taken a turn that Flynn had thought would lead them to freedom, they came upon a dead end, the only way forward being a tall, smooth cliff that was impossible to climb.

Two-Eye growled at him. "Nice going, Rider," he said. "What now?"

This had been unexpected…but then, inspiration struck Flynn, and he grinned. "We can make it," he said. "Just boost me up to the top and I'll pull you both up."

Two-Eye frowned, but, upon hearing the sounds of their pursuers growing louder, he nodded. "Fine." He held his hand out. "But I'm holding the satchel."

Flynn adopted an expression of mock hurt. "What? You guys don't trust me? Even after all we've been through?"

The brothers' hard expressions did not change, and Flynn sighed. "Fine. Here."

He handed the satchel to Two-Eye, and the three made their way to the base of the cliff. Moving quickly, Two-Eye got up on One-Eye's shoulders, and Flynn climbed up them both, nimbly reaching the top. "Now pull us up," Two-Eye grunted.

Flynn smiled down at them. "Love to, boys, but…" He held up the satchel. "My hands are full."

Two-Eye's eyes widened as he realized that Flynn had taken it from him…completely without him noticing. "What?" His shock turned to rage as Flynn disappeared from the top. "RIDER!"

Flynn allowed himself a chuckle. He had been looking for a way to make it so that he wouldn't have to share the loot, and that had been perfect. Now, the brothers would be captured…and given the kingdom's policy for punishing high-profile thieves, they wouldn't be able to bother him anymore. They were a nasty pair, anyway.

Still, he didn't allow himself to believe that he was out of the woods yet (pun not intended). The Stabbington brothers might have been high-profile targets, but he was higher, and he knew the guards would not give him up so easily.

And he was right; only a few minutes passed before he heard the sound of hooves again. Quickly, he looked around; he would need to use another strategy to evade the guards this time. His eyes alighted on a nearby tree, and he grinned. That would do. Moving swiftly, he grabbed the lowest branch that looked like it could support him and hoisted himself up. The sounds of pursuit were drawing nearer, though, and he knew he had to be quick if he wanted to escape the guards' notice. Just in time, he ducked behind the trunk, standing on another branch, when they came into view. With any luck, they would just pass him by…

But, they didn't. The man at the front held up a hand, and he and the four men behind him came to a stop. "Which way did he go?"

"I'm not sure, sir," said one of the guards.

The man in front looked around, and Flynn recognized, even in the dark, the young captain of the guards, Marcus. He began thinking. Marcus was competent enough…but he had heard of some potential weaknesses…

Marcus grunted and looked around. "We'll have to split up, then," he said. "William, you check down there. Finn, you over that way." As he pointed, the guards whose names had been called broke off and galloped away. (Well, that is, their horses did. With them on their backs.) "Saxtus, over there. And Claudius, there."

The last two riders departed, but Marcus remained in the area. "But, Flynn Rider," he muttered to himself, "might you still be in this area, hiding from us?"

Flynn grimaced. With Marcus so close to him, he couldn't make a run for it without being noticed. But then, his gaze caught on a low-hanging branch that had a vine trailing from it, and he got an idea.

He waited until Marcus's back was turned, then knelt down and grabbed the vine. Then, he began pulling. As he had hoped, the vine brought the flexible tree limb backwards, towards him. Once it was far back enough, he carefully set it down and put his foot on top of it, firmly holding it there.

He grinned. Now, for the fun part. "Evening, Captain," he said.

Marcus whirled around, almost falling off his horse. "Rider?" he said, bringing his horse around. He seemed perplexed that Flynn had just shown himself, but managed to shake it off fairly quickly. "So, giving yourself up? Saves me some trouble." He urged his horse to take a couple of steps forward.

Flynn shrugged. "Just thought I'd give you guys a chance." He smirked. "You know, for a change."

The captain glared at him. "Cocky, aren't you? Well, your days are numbered. I've got four other men ready to take you in, as well as six to deal with your partners." He made a face that was almost reprimanding. "That was cold, by the way, ditching them like that."

"Eh, dog-eat-dog world and all that," said the thief.

Marcus pointed at him with his sword. "And unfortunately for you, it's not a world you'll be spending much more time in."

"Hm," said Flynn nonchalantly. He changed the subject. "You know, Captain…this is the first time we've really gotten to talk like this. We should take the opportunity to get to know each other better."

Marcus raised an eyebrow. "What point would that serve? Our relationship will be nonexistent in just a couple of days. Besides, I don't need to know about you."

Flynn nodded. "Yeah…guess you're right. I already know a good deal about you. Heard things here and there. Apparently, you're a man who thinks highly of himself."

"So are you."

Flynn turned his head and looked upward, as if in thought. Then, he smiled and shook his head. "No, actually, I can't say I think highly of you, Captain."

And with that, he lifted his foot holding down the vine. Now unrestrained, the branch swung down back to its original position—which happened to be right where Captain Marcus was at the moment.

To his credit, the captain had quick reflexes, and was able to dive off of his horse at the last second. But the branch did strike the horse itself, who reared up and whinnied, upset.

And whatever happened after that, Flynn wouldn't know; he was on the ground and running a second after the branch had swung down. He heard the captain yelling at him, but figured it would be a few seconds before he could calm down his horse and mount it again. That was enough of a head start to get somewhere.

Unfortunately, there were the other guards to deal with. As he dashed through the forest, he heard shouts behind him, voices that clearly did not belong to Marcus. He would have to do something about them, too…but if he was heading where he thought he was heading, that could be arranged.

Moments later, the trees cleared, and Flynn found himself looking at a ravine, the space between his side and the next too far to jump, even for a horse. But he had been to this area recently, and if memory served (and his luck held), there would be…

He grinned as he saw the narrow log that stretched along the gap. He dashed over to it and jumped on, landing lightly, and made his way across as quickly as possible without falling off. A few seconds later, he was on the other side. He turned around, and only a few more seconds passed before his pursuers emerged from the trees themselves. By that time, however, he was stomping on the log, jarring it slightly. "It's Rider!" called one of the guards. "Take aim!"

They were planning to shoot him, then. He had to move quickly. But when he could do little more than bring the log down a couple of inches, he was forced to take evasive action, leaping backwards and letting four crossbow bolts sink into the ground around where he had been a second ago. "Get closer!" called another guard, and he took a step towards the log. He stepped on it, another guard right behind him, both readying their crossbows for another shot.

But then, the log tilted downwards. Just a bit, but enough to be noticeable. The guards hesitated, and Flynn saw his chance. He put his foot down on the log and stomped lightly. The log shook, and the guards took a step back. He grinned at them and stomped again. This time, the log jostled more significantly, and one guard dropped his crossbow in an attempt to balance himself. It fell over the edge, down into the ravine below. The guard in question glanced down, and gulped.

_That should be enough,_ Flynn thought. He raised his foot again, high up this time…and the guards' instincts of self-preservation took over. They scrambled back onto the other side, their feet touching the ground right before Flynn's foot came down. The log dipped further…and kept going down, at a steady pace. For an instant, both parties watched its progress, and then gravity overcame it entirely and it came loose and fell into the ravine below.

Flynn flashed another grin over at the guards. "Later, guys."

And with that, he disappeared into the trees behind him.

He gave it several minutes before, upon hearing no sounds of pursuit, he became satisfied that he had lost them, and his smile widened. Everything had gone perfectly. Now, he had the crown, and was free to do what he pleased with it.

Well, maybe not entirely. He would have to lay low for a little while before he could make any sort of next move. But if the guards couldn't catch him just then, they wouldn't be able to find him before then.

He let out a satisfied sigh as he strolled through the woods, satchel under his arm, his mind lighter than it had been in a long time.

* * *

Marcus was in a very bad mood as he and the other guards rode back to the castle. Everything that could have gone wrong had. Rider and his cohorts had stolen the princess's crown right out from under his nose—on her birthday, no less. And despite being alerted to the act fairly quickly, they had failed utterly to capture him and retrieve the crown. Even the Stabbington brothers had gotten away, after overpowering the six men Marcus had left with them. _Six_ men! What was necessary to get these guys?

He gritted his teeth. Why did his men have so much trouble with this? This was the sort of stuff they were trained for. If they couldn't do that…

Yeah, he was disappointed with them. And he was upset with himself for allowing Rider to get the better of him. His mood only worsened when he thought back to that, especially the last comment Rider had made. _Doesn't think much of me…_ He was a cocky piece of scum, and he deserved the gallows. But what chance would Marcus have of bringing him there now? Now that he had gotten away with the crown, he wasn't likely to show his face again in the area.

"Captain?" came a voice from next to him. He turned his gaze on the speaker, William. "Captain, I'm sorry we—"

Marcus grunted and turned away. If he wanted apologies or excuses, he'd ask for them. Fortunately, William took the hint and fell silent, and no one said a word for the remainder of the ride.

After returning to the castle, the still-irate captain made his way back to his room, after brusquely ordering William to report back to the king and queen. He didn't think he could face them after such a failure…

He took off his armor, but didn't feel sleepy in the slightest. How had this happened? How had he and his men failed so completely? They had been able to stop this sort of stuff before—robberies and even murders had been prevented in the past thanks to their intervention. Yet this one thief, this thief who had stolen more than all the other criminals combined, was able to evade them while making it seem like a game. Like he was toying with them.

He brought his fist against his bedpost. If only his father were here…he wouldn't have let Rider get away. He would have come up with some sort of way to catch him. He wouldn't have let the crown be so unguarded. Marcus had thought that he had learned a lot from watching Julius…but it looked like it was all useless in the face of an actual, difficult situation.

"Dad…" he muttered. "Dad, I don't know what to do…This was Rapunzel's crown he stole. She loved that crown. How am I supposed to face her, or anyone?" His face clouded over for a moment. "How did my men mess this up so badly?" It may not have been entirely their fault…but they couldn't escape all of the blame.

He began to shake slightly. "Why can't I do this? What am I missing? I…am I…I just don't know what to think!" He raised his head. "Dad…" His voice broke. "Why did you have to die?"

Tears began to flow down his face, and his body shook with sobs. He could only lie down as sorrow overtook him, and eventually, the emotionally exhausted captain drifted off to sleep.

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: I know this shows the less-pleasant sides of Flynn and Marcus, but, hey, they're human. They've got flaws.**

**Anyway, Chapter 6 will probably be out in the next few days. Don't forget to give me your opinions!**


	6. Resurgence

Tara still felt like she was in a state of recovery after waking up the next morning—though first, she had to make sure that the events of the previous night hadn't been a dream. For it seemed like it would only be in a dream that Captain Marcus would dance with her and tell her that he was not in love with Rapunzel. Almost too good to be true…Still, they hadn't had any interaction that night outside of that one dance, and she supposed that, had it been a dream, they would have. Besides, she did remember Rapunzel revealing to everyone that they had been wrong about her and Marcus, and as the castle was still abuzz about that, it must have been real.

She enjoyed the memories for a bit before she had to tell herself that it didn't actually mean anything; that Marcus dancing with her wasn't necessarily a romantic gesture, and that even if Rapunzel wasn't his romantic interest, there was no shortage of other women who would be more than happy to fill in that role. Her chances may have gone up—but only from virtually zero to slim. It was hard to fight against that speck of hope, though…

As a result of all this, she had gone through the morning in a sort of daze, prompting a couple people to remark on her behavior. Though they refrained from reprimanding her—a lot of people were still getting over the events of the previous night. The revelation about Rapunzel and Marcus was on many people's minds, of course, but the other significant event from the night of the party was also a hot topic: the theft of Rapunzel's crown. Speculation had begun almost right after Marcus had been called away in the ballroom, and though the guards had wanted to keep it quiet, one of the more persistent information-gatherers in the castle had managed to weasel it out of someone, and now everyone was worrying about it. The crown was an important symbol, and losing it would be a blow to the kingdom. As a result, Captain Marcus had not been seen for the entire day, and people assumed he was doing everything he could to retrieve the crown. Tara couldn't help but smile at the thought of his devotion.

Early that afternoon, when she was replacing a small collection of borrowed books, she heard someone come into the library. After sliding the last book back into its place on the shelf, she turned to see Rapunzel in a corner, looking over the collection of novels. "Good afternoon," she said with a curtsey, as the princess turned to face her.

"Oh, hi, Tara," said Rapunzel. "I was just, uh, looking for something to pass the time."

"Do you need any help?"

"Oh, uh, no thanks. I think I'm okay."

The door to the library opened again, and, looking through one of the bookshelves, Tara saw one of the court ladies enter. Rapunzel cast a look over at her, as well, and her eyes widened. "On second thought," she said, lowering her voice, "I do need help. Make sure she doesn't see me."

Tara frowned. "Sorry?"

"I'll explain later! Just…help me out, okay?"

The young bookkeeper was mildly perplexed, but immediately moved to draw the lady's attention. "Good afternoon, ma'am," she said brightly. "Can I help you with anything?"

The lady looked at her the way she might look at a servant. (Which, Tara supposed, she was.) "I am looking for a book entitled _The Right Way_ by Johnathan Grieber. Would you happen to know where it might be located?"

Tara did…and it happened to be right in the area where Rapunzel was hiding. Thinking quickly, she said, "Um, I believe so. If you'll follow me…"

She led the lady in the opposite direction, and began to browse a bookshelf at random. "It should be around here…"

The lady raised an eyebrow. "This looks like a section on science books. _The Right Way_ is a novel."

Tara hoped that her voice had carried over to where the princess was concealing herself. "Oh…oh, yes, of course! I apologize; I was thinking of another work by Johnathan _Griever_."

"I have never heard of such a person."

"Oh, uh, he's a little more obscure. Only has a few small works. But come this way, the novels are over here."

As Tara turned around, she got a brief glimpse of Rapunzel's long blonde hair being dragged into another alcove, one several yards away from where _The Right Way_ was. She glanced sideways at the lady, hoping that she had not also seen it, but it looked as though she hadn't. "This way," she said, and led the woman to the novels filed under G. "Here it is," she said after a moment, taking it out and handing it over. "Just make sure to sign it out."

The lady raised an eyebrow again. "Of course."

She turned and walked away. Once she had left the library, Tara looked over to where Rapunzel was hiding. "Thanks," the princess said, smiling at her. "I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome, Princess," said Tara, trying to decide whether or not to ask Rapunzel why she wanted to remain hidden.

Fortunately, Rapunzel solved the problem for her. "I just—a lot of people have been going on about what happened last night. I wasn't in the mood for hearing any more." She gave a sheepish grin. "I know that doesn't sound very princess-like of me."

"No, it's all right," said Tara. "I know a lot of people have been discussing it." She hesitated. "Is everything okay?"

Rapunzel sighed. "Well…not really. A lot of people are either mad at me for not living up to their expectations or mad at me for keeping the truth from them for so long." She looked up at Tara. "And I'm sorry for that, I am. I just…I don't think either of us fully understood what was going on."

"It…it's okay," Tara said.

Rapunzel shook her head. "It's not okay. We've made a lot of people upset." She let out a light chuckle. "And here I am, avoiding them…"

"Don't blame yourself, Princess," said Tara. "People just made a lot of assumptions. It's not your fault."

"But we knew about it, and didn't do anything to stop it."

"Well…forgive me, but it sounds like you didn't completely understand all of it."

Rapunzel blinked. "I did say that, didn't I?" She laughed, but it didn't last for long, and her face fell once more. "And Marcus has shut himself in his room after last night."

"He…what's he doing?"

The princess sighed. "I wish I knew. He won't answer when I knock, except for the one time he told me to leave."

Tara frowned. That didn't sound like the Marcus she knew… "Could he be working on something?"

"I don't know, but whatever it is, he could spare time to see me." She sighed again. "I'm a little worried, to tell the truth…" Then, a thought seemed to strike her, and she looked back up. "But…maybe he would answer if you tried."

Tara blinked, taken aback. "M-me? Why me, Your Highness?"

"You don't have to call me that, remember."

"Oh, right. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. And to answer your question…" Another thought seemed to come to her, and she hesitated. "Um, maybe just someone else trying might have different results."

"Oh. Well, I'd be happy to try." Even though she had told herself her chances with the captain were still low, she found it very hard to turn down an opportunity to see him again.

"Great! Thanks! Just, uh, send him to my room. Or, on second thought…you can just bring him."

Tara gave a little bow. "I'll do my best."

* * *

And so the bookkeeper found herself walking through the halls of the castle to the captain's room. As she did, she found herself wondering why Marcus would have shut himself in his room like he did. Was it just that he was working on a plan that was so important that even the princess couldn't interrupt him? She had a hard time of thinking of anything else, but it still didn't seem right to her…

Soon, or so it seemed, she found herself in front of his door. Palms sweating, she knocked lightly. "Captain?" she said. After there was no response, she knocked harder and said, "Captain Marcus? Excuse me, sir?"

Several seconds passed before she heard something, and the door opened. Her heartbeat quickened, but when she got a look at the figure in the door, she couldn't help but start in surprise. Instead of his usual, confident self, Captain Marcus had an air of defeat about him. His eyes lacked their usual brightness, and were instead dim blue orbs that did not convey nearly as much of a sense of life. His posture, instead of being straight, was stooped and resigned, and his hair, while not messy, was unkempt. Still, he managed to convey a sense of surprise when he said, "Tara. What are you doing here?"

"Th-the princess sent me, sir," she replied. "She's worried about you."

He raised an eyebrow. "Worried?"

"Yes, sir." She hesitated. "Um…forgive me for asking, but is everything okay?"

He looked down at her, and for a moment, she was afraid that she had overstepped her boundaries. Then, he sighed. "No, it's not." He paused. "But thanks for asking."

"You're…you're welcome." She hesitated again. "Would you be willing to go see her?"

"She wants to see me?"

"Yes, sir."

He sighed deeply and ran a hand through his hair. "I suppose I'll have to do it sooner or later…"

He looked so…so lost and lifeless that she had to restrain herself from putting a hand on his shoulder. "Well, whenever you're ready, I can take you there."

He nodded. "I suppose I can go now." He looked down at his outfit—his usual guard outfit, sans the cape—and waved a hand. "Not like anyone can think less of me…"

Tara frowned. "Um, what do you mean, sir?"

"I mean that I failed, Tara. I couldn't retrieve the crown or catch Rider last night. I'm quite sure it's besmirched my reputation pretty well." He gritted his teeth in anger. "Because eleven of us couldn't even capture three rotten thieves…"

"Well, you still have a chance to catch them, right?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Tara, Rider isn't going to stick around now that he's got the crown. He'll go somewhere else and sell it for all sorts of wealth."

"But couldn't you follow him to wherever he goes and still retrieve the crown?"

"Oh, and how am I supposed to find where that is?" the captain said, a note of harshness in his voice that made Tara shrink back. When he saw that, he said, "Sorry. I'm just…" He sighed again. "Come on, let's head out."

They made their way to Rapunzel's room, all sorts of thoughts going through Tara's mind. This was, indeed, not the Captain Marcus she was familiar with. His failure at the hands of Flynn Rider had made him into a defeated, self-hating man. He hadn't been spending the morning working on a plan to get the crown back; he had been spending it moping (or so it seemed). His pride had been so wounded that it had crippled him. In other words, he was flawed—an idea that hadn't really struck Tara until this point. Sure, no one was perfect, but Captain Marcus was often viewed as something of an ideal figure (especially by the young women—herself included). He did indeed have a strong reputation—and while she didn't know that it had taken much of a blow after Rider's escape, she was fairly certain that it would if others saw him in this state. And, even though the rose-colored glasses she had viewed him through had been cracked, she found herself abhorring the idea of him suffering like that. So she took care to listen for others as they made their way, and if she heard footsteps, she attempted to engage him in conversation, so as to not make it look like she was escorting a dead-on-the-inside captain of the guard through the castle. The pair earned a couple of second glances, but no particularly questioning or incredulous looks, to her relief.

Finally, they reached Rapunzel's room, and Marcus heaved yet another sigh. "All right, we're here."

Tara stepped forward to knock. Then, she hesitated, and turned her head back to look at him. "Captain…"

"Yeah?"

She thought. "People make mistakes, or mess up. It happens all the time. But…we can always get back on our feet afterward. It's one of the things that makes us special."

He stared at her intently, and she forced herself to hold his gaze. Then, in a tone that wasn't exactly cheerful, but definitely was sincere, he said, "Thank you."

She smiled, and knocked on the door. "Princess Rapunzel?"

* * *

Rapunzel felt a surge of relief upon hearing Tara's voice through the door. Hopefully, a meeting between her and Marcus would be just what was needed. "Come in," she called.

The door opened, and Tara stood there next to Marcus. Upon seeing her childhood friend, Rapunzel had to stifle a gasp (which did not go unnoticed by Pascal on her shoulder). His usual confidence had been replaced by a dark look, and his body was slouched over. Almost most significantly, he wasn't wearing his cape, which she knew he loved. "Marcus!" she said.

He looked at her with a mixture of apprehension and disappointment. "Hello," he said, his voice much duller than usual.

Rapunzel turned to Tara. "Thank you so much, Tara."

She curtsied. "You're welcome, Princess."

She cast a final look at the captain, then took her leave. Sighing, Marcus shuffled into the room and closed the door.

A second later, Rapunzel had crossed the room and put her arms around him. "Marcus, what's _happened_?"

Marcus blinked. "Huh?"

"You look like you've got no life left in you. Did something happen last night?"

His eyes darkened. "Aside from my bitter and complete failure at the hands of that insufferable thief?"

She frowned. "_That's_ what's getting at you?"

"The conduct of myself and my men was reprehensible. We failed to apprehend any of the three thieves or retrieve what they stole. Clearly, the royal guard of Corona is not worthy of a strong reputation." Removing her hands from him, he knelt down and bowed his head, clearly ashamed.

It broke Rapunzel's heart to see her best friend, who had always been so confident, ruined like this. But she knew she had to be strong herself in order for him to regain his strength. "Marcus," she said firmly, "stand up."

He looked up at her, and slowly got to his feet. "First off," she said, "let me say that I am speaking to you as a friend to a friend, not as the princess to the captain of the guard."

He frowned. "But…I lost your crown. You have every right to punish me as the princess of—"

She hit him lightly on the face, and while it did not hurt, it was enough to silence him. And, following her motion, Pascal jumped from Rapunzel's shoulder to Marcus's, crawled over to his face, and gave him a light slap, too. He blinked, and looked at them both, as Pascal returned to Rapunzel's shoulder. "Now, listen," said Rapunzel. "You have a position with a lot of responsibility, and sometimes, people in those positions mess up. Do you remember the small riot that happened three years ago, because my parents hadn't paid enough attention to the workers?"

"Yeah."

"Well, they messed up. They said it themselves, later on. But they _fixed_ it." At the word "fixed," she jabbed her finger into his chest. "And that's what responsible people do. They fix things that they mess up."

"Are you calling me irresponsible?"

"If I say yes, will I get my best friend back?"

He stared at her for a moment. "You told me," she continued, "last night, that if I wasn't satisfied, I had to go out and find whatever it is that does satisfy me. Well, if _you're_ not satisfied with what happened with the crown, why don't you go out and find whatever it is that will solve that?"

"What, find Rider? I have no idea how…"

"Well, that's something else you told me, isn't it? Just do whatever feels right." She put her hands on her hips. "Which is not what you're doing now. Unless you can look me in the eye and tell me that you think that the best thing to do is shut yourself in your room."

He didn't meet her gaze, but she did sense that some of his despair had been lifted. "So…?" she said. When he still didn't move, Pascal lashed out with his tongue and flicked him on the forehead. "Hey!" he said, looking up.

Rapunzel raised an eyebrow expectantly. Then, she lowered it. "Marcus, it'll be okay," she said. "We can find some way to get through it, however it may be. Your men look up to you, and I know you can give them something to aspire to."

Marcus seemed to absorb these words, then think about something. Pascal prepared to flick his tongue out again, but Rapunzel held up a hand, and he remained still. Then, slowly, Marcus began to nod. "Now that I think about it…" he said, "Rider would probably want to lay low for a little while." He nodded more firmly. "Yeah…he'd expect us to be after him for a while, then slack off. And that's when he'd move." His eyes began to brighten. "So if we don't let up, he'll eventually be trapped."

His words didn't exactly ring with joy for the princess—she had never liked the hostility and violence between the guard and the criminals, even when it came to hanging them for their crimes—but the tone in which he said them could not have been better. The old Marcus was coming back, and she smiled. And when he raised his face to look at her, he was smiling slightly, too. "Yes," he said. "I've got a lot of work to do."

Rapunzel gave him a quick hug. "Then go do it."

He smiled broadly at her. "You're a good friend, Rapunzel."

And with that, he strode away, and Rapunzel couldn't help but grin as she heard him say, "Now, where the heck is my cape?"

* * *

In her tower, Mother Gothel paced in anticipation. Something was coming. She could feel it; something that would resolve her problems was near at hand.

She had given a lot of thought to how to solve the problem of the healing magic losing some of its effectiveness. There was no way to steal the magic from Rapunzel—it was bound to the princess, as it had been since her birth. If she asked for more frequent visits, it might raise questions. Besides, her method of having the princess continuously pay her visits couldn't last forever. That left her with two options: find another powerful source of magic, or complete the job she had attempted eighteen years ago, and steal the princess herself.

The first one was far from ideal; she knew nothing of any comparable magic that she could use in any nearby areas. But the second one would be very difficult to pull off. If she had just managed to kidnap the princess eighteen years ago, she could have raised her to be her tool for getting younger, without her realizing the truth. Unfortunately, that ship had long since sailed, and Rapunzel was bound to her birth home. She knew the kingdom well, as well as her parents and friends, and wouldn't willingly leave them without a _very_ good reason. Mother Gothel could, of course, take Rapunzel away by force, but that would bring a whole new set of complications—for one, people would suspect her, and the less attention she could draw to herself, the better.

There were all sorts of possibilities, but all of them carried issues. So she would wait. Wait for the opportunity to present itself when she could seize that magic for herself once and for all.


	7. Into the Woods

**A/N: Sorry for the (slight) delay; midterm season has been keeping me pretty busy. Fortunately, though, my spring break is coming up, so updates should become more frequent.**

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

And so, the guard surged back into action. Captain Marcus sent regular patrols into the forest to scout for any sign of Flynn Rider (or the Stabbington brothers), and he increased security around the castle to prevent something similar from happening again. It was a lot of work for the guards, but seeing their captain's reinvigorated spirit was an excellent motivator, and they found themselves ready and willing to work hard. People began to say good things about the captain again, and many continued to lament that he and the princess weren't getting engaged—though several still held hopes.

Still, despite all of their efforts, Marcus and the guardsmen were unsuccessful in finding either Flynn Rider or the Stabbington brothers. Yet he refused to let the lack of success get to him, always claiming that they were getting close, and that there were only so many places where thieves could hide. Thus, the air of confidence managed to remain around the castle.

But Marcus was still worried. He kept his worries private after his talk with Rapunzel, but he couldn't shake the possibility that Rider might ultimately succeed. After all, he was a master of evasion—but, then again, he had never faced a group of guards this large and determined before. They'd get him eventually.

At least, that's what he told himself to soothe his worries before they resurfaced.

* * *

Three days passed before Rapunzel announced her intention to take Maximus out for a ride in the woods, to celebrate her new ownership of him. Her parents, however, were concerned. "I'm just not comfortable with you going out there while Captain Marcus and his men are searching for that thief," said her father.

"I'll be fine," Rapunzel insisted. "You haven't objected to me going out to visit Miss Gothel in the past."

"That was different," he responded. "For one thing, we weren't dealing with a criminal hiding in the woods, and for another, that serves the solid purpose of giving company to a solitary woman."

"And this serves the purpose of letting me and Maximus get out," his daughter retorted. "Come on, Dad…"

The king glanced to his side at his wife, who gave a small smile and shrug. "Oh, very well," he said. "Just make sure you don't go too far, and that you're back by this afternoon."

"Thanks, Dad!" she said. "I will be. And don't worry, it'll all be fine."

* * *

Marcus voiced similar concerns (as well as subtle hints that she might get in their way), but the princess remained resolute, and he was forced to concede as well. "If you get lost, just listen for the sound of hooves," he told her.

She rolled her eyes. "I won't get lost. I've been in the forest a bunch of times."

"Just saying. Your parents would never forgive me if I let you get lost out there."

"Let me? What control do you have over whether or not I do get lost?"

"Just come back safely."

"Yeah, yeah."

And so, Pascal on her shoulder, hair braided, and feet bare, she went to the stables, mounted Maximus, and took off. At first, she thought about paying an impromptu visit to Miss Gothel, but decided against it, both because the older woman probably wanted her privacy and because she wanted to do some exploring, outside of the route she took to the tower. So she guided Maximus in a different direction, leading him along at a steady pace that allowed her to look around. The forest really was beautiful. _I really should come out here with my painting kit,_ she thought. There was so much that would make excellent art.

On the way, she chatted with her two companions, even though they couldn't reciprocate. "It's so quiet out here. Oh, look at that tree over there, the one with the vine hanging from it! Isn't that a great view? I've got to remember this location…"

Pascal gave her a look that seemed to say "This and twenty other locations in the past ten minutes." "Oh, come on, Pascal," she said to him. "How can you not love all of this?" She gestured to a patch of rocks that all had a light blue tint. "Isn't that fascinating?"

The chameleon studied them for a moment, then screwed up his face, as if in concentration. A second later, his body had taken on the same hue as the rocks. He looked up at Rapunzel proudly, and she grinned down at him and said, "Show-off."

She guided Maximus further along the familiar route, then caught a glimpse of another path, one that she didn't recognize from any of her previous venturings into the forest. She was about to pass it by when Marcus's words from the night of her birthday came back to her, the ones that she had repeated to him the next day. _If you're not satisfied, you have to go out and find what makes you satisfied._

Was she dissatisfied? Well, things hadn't really changed since the night of her birthday, when she had said that she was. And her departure that day really had spoken to the restrictions she faced in her life—her parents and Marcus, while well-meaning, were sometimes too concerned for her safety to pay enough attention to what she wanted. Sure, there was risk in going out unsupervised, but there was risk in everything. Marcus faced risk much more frequently than she did, but he didn't have a bunch of people fawning over him, reminding him to be safe.

No, there was still something lacking in her life. And while a new path in the forest probably wasn't going to lead her to whatever it was, it was a start. She would go this way, and hopefully come closer to finding out what it was that would make her satisfied.

Moving Maximus away from their current path, she pointed him towards the new one. He hesitated and glanced back at her. "Come on, Max," she said. "We've gotta have a little adventure in our lives! We'll just go down it a little bit and then come back."

The horse still didn't seem overly eager, but followed his rider's guide, and the three of them went down the new path. Like much of the rest of the forest, it was beautiful—but there was something else to it that endeared it to the princess. She realized that it was the unknown part of it, the fact that this was not something that she was intimately familiar with. It was exciting. And it made her think. Maybe some real excitement was what she was missing. And not excitement like the drama centered around her and Marcus. Something else…though she wasn't quite sure what.

But maybe she would find out. Eager, she spurred Maximus on.

A few more minutes into the ride, Maximus perked up his head, sniffing the air. "What is it, boy?" asked Rapunzel.

In response, the horse went off in another direction, moving quicker than normal. "Whoa, slow down, there," said Rapunzel. "What's the matter?"

But, a few moments later, she saw what had gotten the horse's attention. "An apple tree…really, Max?"

Maximus stopped a few feet from it and gave her a look that was both apologetic and pleading. "Oh, all right," said the princess, and Maximus skipped over (if horses can skip) to the tree, and immediately sunk his teeth into the nearest apple.

"Well," said Rapunzel, preparing to dismount, "we're probably gonna be here for a little while." She got off and looked around. The apple tree that Maximus was now treating as a buffet stood apart from the other trees, and didn't look fully grown just yet. Of course, that might have just been because the trees surrounding it were so large. Walking over to one, Rapunzel put her hand on it and looked up, marveling at its grandeur. Then, deciding it would be fun, she started to climb it, grabbing one of the branches and pulling herself up. Pascal made a small worrisome sound, to which she replied in a reassuring tone, "Calm down, Pascal. I know what I'm doing."

The reptile made a doubtful face, but Rapunzel was too focused on climbing to pay attention. As she got higher, she felt a smile growing on her face. She was free out here. She had wanted to take the unfamiliar path, and she had. And now, she wanted to climb the tree, and she was doing so. The excitement of the new…_I'm getting closer to finding out what's missing!_ she thought excitedly.

Then, Maximus's head was perked up once more…but while before there had been a note of eagerness in his movement, now it was more like…alertness, almost nervousness. Rapunzel, glancing over in his direction, did not miss it. "Something wrong, Max?" she asked.

Maximus stood stock still for another couple of seconds. Then, he dashed over to the tree Rapunzel had climbed up and began whinnying, almost frantically. "Maximus! What's wrong?" said Rapunzel, beginning to climb down.

But the horse would not calm down, and seemed more and more keen on getting Rapunzel back on his back. Now quite worried herself, Rapunzel hurried down the tree, scraping herself a couple of times but overlooking it in the face of whatever it was that was making Maximus so upset. Finally, she jumped down onto his back, and before she could get herself secured, he had taken off. "Ah!" she said, almost falling off. "Hold on!"

Maximus slowed slightly until he felt Rapunzel secure herself, then returned to full speed. But only a couple seconds after he had started, he stopped, skidding to a halt, staring ahead. Following his gaze, Rapunzel gasped, as she found out what had spooked him in the first place.

A huge brown bear was lumbering along just a few feet away. It didn't look particularly threatening, but it was certainly large and dangerous enough to cause harm to them if it wanted. It was turning its head from side to side, as if looking for something, and Rapunzel dearly hoped that something wasn't a princess and a horse to have for lunch. "Max," she said quietly, leaning down, "just walk away slowly, and maybe it won't see us."

Maximus dipped his head in a nod, and, still watching the bear, began to edge away from it. Then, he stopped again, and Rapunzel heard a shrill barking sound come from his feet. Looking over his side, she saw a small bundle of fur sitting right next to one of his hooves. It was a bear cub, and it was looking back up at her.

Her first instinct was to smile at the cute little animal. Then, she remembered the adult bear just a few feet away. She turned back to it—only to see it looking straight back at her. Fear rose up in the princess as she remembered the warnings she had received about bears as a child. "Bears may look scary," her mother had told her, "but they're usually pretty shy. Just stay away from them, and they won't bother you."

"Really?" Rapunzel had said.

"With one exception," her mother had continued, her face becoming serious. "Never _ever_ get between a mother bear and her cub. She will think you are a threat to the cub, and will not hesitate to attack you to protect it."

At this, Rapunzel had grown wide-eyed and scared, so her mother had taken her in her arms. "It's okay, dear," she had said. "Just make sure to be very careful. Can you promise me that?"

"Yes, Mommy."

Now, though, Rapunzel realized she was in the very situation that her mother had warned her against. There was a bear cub at her feet, with its mother a few feet away—and she was right between them. She could almost see the mother's thought process from where she was.

Her cub was over there.

Those other creatures were right next to her cub.

Those other creatures might hurt her cub.

She had to get rid of them.

With a roar, the bear bounded towards them. "Maximus! Go!" yelled Rapunzel.

Maximus prepared to run—but found his path blocked by the cub. He reared up to steady himself, and Rapunzel lost her balance. Before she knew it, she was on the ground, on her back, the mother bear getting closer. Screaming, she began to back up, even though she knew that there was no way that she could outrun a fully grown bear.

But then, Maximus reared up again, kicking his legs and whinnying loudly. The mother bear's attention went to him, and he sidestepped to put some distance between himself and Rapunzel. Realizing that he was trying to draw the bear's attention, Rapunzel continued to back up, hoping to put some more distance between her and the bear. Unfortunately, this movement caught the bear's eye, and she turned back to Rapunzel, growling. Just when Rapunzel thought she would go for her, Maximus whinnied again, and took a step towards the bear cub.

That got the mother's firm attention. Whirling back to Maximus, she let out a terrifying snarl and took off after him. Upon seeing that he had her attention once and for all, the horse dashed away. "Maximus!" Rapunzel called.

But neither Maximus nor, fortunately, the mother bear reacted to her, both disappearing from her sight in a matter of seconds. Breathing heavily, Rapunzel got to her feet, anxious in the extreme for the horse's safety. Maximus was fast, but if the bear managed to catch up to him…

Another bark got her attention, and she remembered the cub just a few feet away. Pascal noticed it too, and began to motion that they should get away from there as quickly as possible. Rapunzel nodded, and found her feet moving backwards, though she didn't know where they were leading her.

A roar from the direction the bear had run off in spurred her into action. Turning, she bolted, not knowing or caring where she was going. Branches tore at her cloak and hair, but she pushed through them, determined to keep going. Then, her foot came down on thin air instead of solid ground, and she found herself tumbling down a hill. Unable to stop, she kept rolling, her braid coming undone, Pascal chittering in a panicked tone on her shoulder. Finally, she felt herself on flat ground. After waiting a moment for her dizziness to wear off, she slowly got to her feet.

Well, she was still in the forest—but she had absolutely no idea where. The surrounding trees, rocks and bushes were completely unfamiliar to her. Not to mention that she had gotten there from a route that she knew nothing about…

She sunk into a sitting position. How had this happened? She was having such a good time…and it had really seemed like she was getting somewhere with her life. Now, she was lost in the forest, with no way to get back. Maximus wasn't with her—and she fervently hoped he had escaped from the mother bear—so she had no guide to get her back. She could walk, but without knowing where she was going, she was only bound to get herself even more lost.

Tears came to her eyes, and she was on the verge of breaking down when she remembered Marcus telling her that, if she did get lost, to just listen for the sound of hooves. Hope surged within her before she realized that, since the forest was so big, there wasn't a huge chance of her running into any guards out here.

But it was the best chance she had. Steeling herself, she picked a direction and started walking.


	8. The Deal

Flynn Rider wasn't as ecstatic as he had been three days ago. The guards were out day and night looking for him—not that he had expected otherwise, but they were putting in more of an effort than he had thought they would. Not just that, but they were particularly focused, something Flynn had hoped might have been impeded by his wounding the captain's pride. Of course, they still hadn't caught him—but they had come close. He might need to change his plans a bit…

He was a little on edge that morning, having heard the roars of a bear a little ways away. Sure, it wasn't that close to him, but an angry bear was something you wanted to be as far away from as possible. So he kept his eyes and ears alert for any sign of danger. Of course, he usually did so anyway, what with all the guards around and whatnot, but with a bear in the area, extra caution was called for. Though there weren't that many guards in this part of the forest—he suspected they just didn't know the area as well as he did. Not a lot of people did, for that matter.

A little later, he felt (as the euphemism goes) nature calling, and, after listening carefully to make sure no guards (or bears) were around, he hung his satchel on a tree branch and went into the deeper woods. This was almost the only instance that he would let the satchel out of his sight, but it was only for a minute. Still, he was always nervous, and found himself trying to hurry it up—but, as you may be aware, hurrying up the process in question usually just makes it take longer. So Flynn was forced to grit his teeth and remind himself that he was worrying for nothing, that no one would come along in the next few seconds—and even if they did, he'd hear them, and have time to act.

So, once he had finished, he stepped away, headed back to where he had hung the satchel, and casually reached out an arm to grab it.

Except…it wasn't there. Instead of leather, his hand closed around on nothing.

Panic immediately surged up within the master thief. Impossible…he hadn't heard anyone coming…could it have just fallen off on its own? He looked near the base of the tree, but saw nothing. No sign of it. Whirling around, he scanned the area for any sign of anything—which didn't take long to find. Hurrying away from him was a figure in a brown cloak…with his satchel in hand. "Hey!" he yelled, and ran after the figure.

Upon hearing his voice, the figure turned, and Flynn caught a glimpse of what looked like the face of a young woman—or girl, even—before she turned away and began running herself. Before she had gotten very far, though, something seemed to trip her up, and she stumbled.

That was all Flynn needed. Closing the last few feet between them, he shot out his arm and grabbed hers. "What do you think you're doing?"

She tried to wrench her arm free, but he held tight. That was when he noticed that the material of her dress seemed particularly fine, not like something someone would wear on a trip into the woods. In fact, not like something most people would wear at all. Who was this girl, wearing a nice dress and trying to steal from a thief?

"Let go of me," said the girl, not turning to him.

"Uh, no," said Flynn. "You have something that belongs to me."

"It doesn't _belong_ to you," said the girl. "You stole it."

"Oh, yeah?" said Flynn. "Can you prove that?"

She hesitated. Then, slowly, she turned around and shrugged her hood off, releasing a head of golden hair.

Flynn stared. Not just any head of golden hair. Hair that was dozens of feet long, that shone like the sun. Combined with her high-quality dress…there was only one person that this could be.

He was looking at Princess Rapunzel.

In his surprise, he slackened his grip, and she jerked her arm away. "Hey," he said, but she didn't try to run again. Instead, she returned his gaze, looking more determined than most people would when face-to-face with Corona's most infamous thief. "What…" he began, trying to piece everything together. It made no sense for the princess of Corona and the only child of the king and queen to be out in the forest without any guards or even horse. She was all by herself.

Well, not quite. Flynn's gaze fell upon a small green figure on Rapunzel's shoulder. It was some sort of lizard, by the look of it, and it was giving him a look that matched the princess's.

She spoke again. "I can prove it because I was its previous owner."

This was kind of awkward…but if she was expecting him to be remorseful, she was in for a disappointment. "Well, uh, that's great," said Flynn. "But, emphasis on previous. You're not its owner anymore, so why don't you hand it over and we'll settle this nicely?" He gave her what he thought was a disarming smile, but her only response was to clutch the satchel closer to her. "Okay…you do know you're going to have to return it sooner or later, right?"

Her stare didn't falter. "I could just wait for the guards to show up. They're searching all over the place for you."

"Yeah, thanks, I knew that. But, oddly enough, they don't seem to come around here very often. So if you're planning on waiting for that to happen, you're going to be here for a long time. And I'll have thought of some way to get it back by then."

She took a step back. "You'd better not touch me."

"Oh, yeah? Or what?"

In response, the lizard on her shoulder shot out his tongue, which was a lot longer than Flynn would have guessed. It hit him in the eye, which stung a tiny bit and just felt weird. "Ah!" he said, blinking.

"You mess with me, you mess with Pascal," said Rapunzel.

Flynn looked back at the lizard—whose name was Pascal, apparently. "That's an annoying little reptile…" He turned back to the princess. "Look, Blondie…"

"My name's not Blondie."

"Really? I had no idea. But see here. You can keep me at bay, but I'll still find a way to get that back." His eyes narrowed. "And if I do have to take it by force, your frog isn't going to stop me."

"Pascal is a chameleon."

"That's wonderful. But you know I'm right."

Rapunzel cast her eyes around, and they seemed to fix on a thick tree next to them. "Oh, really?" she said. "What if…" She began swinging the satchel. "What if I hit it against that tree?"

Flynn's eyes widened. "What? That's your own crown!"

"I thought it was yours now."

He narrowed his eyes again. "I meant it _was_ yours."

"Then I shouldn't care about it anymore, should I?"

Flynn looked at the tree trunk. Then, he grinned. "Well, I don't think that will quite be enough to cause it any damage."

"You don't?" A note of fear had entered the princess's voice.

"Nah. That satchel has got some padding, and the crown itself is pretty sturdy. So, sorry, but your little threats won't work."

Rapunzel stopped swinging the satchel, looking lost. Then, she dropped it on the ground. "How about I step on it, then?"

Flynn's gaze went to the princess's bare feet. "With those?"

Rapunzel glanced down at the ground, which had a few nuts from the tree littered around it. Raising up one of her feet, she brought it down on a nut. It split in two with a rather loud cracking sound, and Flynn thought he saw a piece of the shell fly away from it. "Yeah, with these."

He hesitated. It was possible that Rapunzel stomping on the crown wouldn't cause it any damage…but he'd rather not take the chance. Sure, the crown would still be worth something if bent or broken, but the amount would be significantly less. It was also possible that she was bluffing, and that she wouldn't actually go through with causing it any damage. But again, he preferred not to take that chance. "All right," he said. "You've brought us to a stalemate. What were you thinking next?"

Her gaze faltered, then became resolute again. "You let me go, or I'll break this."

"Not gonna happen, Princess. I'd rather have a broken crown than no crown at all."

She went back to thinking. He could almost hear the gears in her brain whirring at top speed. "Okay," she said. "How about this, then. I'm guessing you know this forest pretty well?"

He grinned. "Better than any of your guards."

"Then let's make a deal. You take me back to the kingdom—or at least to somewhere where I can find my way back…"

She hesitated, and he raised an eyebrow. "That's a tall order."

His voice seemed to snap her back into her determination. "You do that for me," she held up the satchel, "and you get this back."

He blinked. "Undamaged?"

"Undamaged."

He thought this over for a minute. He honestly hadn't expected her to offer the crown back, but if she was in fact lost, which she seemed to be, then she needed a way to get out of her bind, and using the crown as a bargaining chip was the logical thing to do. The question, of course, was whether or not it was worth it for him. He had two options: agree to her deal and venture precariously close to the castle to get the crown back, or try to get it back from her then and there, and hope that she wouldn't have time to break it. Oddly enough, though, he felt bad about the second one; he would steal from the princess and just leave her? Sure, he was no stranger to double-crossing, but the people he had done so to had been of, well, lesser moral caliber than the princess. Also, they had been older. And male. Call him sexist, but something in him just didn't feel comfortable with treating a girl that way. Not that he'd put them on a pedestal—he'd tricked a few young ladies before, but breaking hearts was an entirely different matter from abandoning people in the woods. The princess seemed pretty scared, and he doubted she would last very long on her own. There was a possibility that the guards would find her—but it was a big forest, and, like he had said, they didn't come around that area very often.

Still, he definitely wasn't at ease with escorting Rapunzel back to her home. Unless…could it get him in the kingdom's good graces? Maybe not absolve him, but it could be enough to get him a head start before the guards came after him again. But before he could fixate on that idea, doubt entered his mind when he remembered his last encounter with Captain Marcus. The captain had been determined to bring him in, and he might not be so keen on the idea of giving Flynn any sort of leniency—even if the rumors that Flynn had heard were true, and the captain was to be engaged to the princess.

He continued to weigh his options before another thought came to him. What if he agreed to Rapunzel's deal, took her back a little distance, far enough so that she could probably manage her way back on her own, then took back his satchel when she wasn't expecting it and hightailed it out of there? Then he'd have his freedom, the crown, and no conscience berating him for completely abandoning her. After mulling it over briefly, he decided that that was the best course of action. Careful not to let his true ideas show, he nodded. "All right, fine. I'll get you close enough to the kingdom, and you give me the satchel back. With the crown in it. No trying to double-cross me."

She looked as though the idea was completely foreign. "I wasn't going to."

"Good. Then let's get going."

She nodded. "You first."

So, she was smart enough to keep him in her sights. Re-appropriating the crown might be a little more challenging than he had thought…but when faced with the likes of Flynn Rider, there weren't many people who could hang onto their things.

* * *

Rapunzel was doing her best to keep herself from not appearing terrified—and it was taking some effort. She was alone in the forest with the most infamous criminal in the land—though she did have Pascal, and while he couldn't do much to protect her, his presence was comforting. As they walked through the forest, he was huddled up against her cheek, and she could imagine him glaring at the striding figure of Flynn Rider in front of them.

But despite the danger, she had to admit—this was an adventure. Getting lost in the woods, finding yourself in the company of the legendary Flynn Rider, and making a deal with him to take you back—it wasn't what she had had in mind at all, but it was exciting. Still, it was dangerous, and she knew that she would have to stay alert. Rider could turn on her at any moment, or worse, they might run into that bear again. Or something else…Rapunzel didn't know all of the creatures that lived in the forest, and she had no intention of doing so. Well, except for the harmless ones. They were nice. And she supposed that a bear wouldn't always be trying to kill her—but it could nevertheless. She wondered if there were any other chameleons around…

She shook her head. She was getting distracted, and she needed her focus if she wanted to make it back. Of course, there was another possibility for her to get back…but that wouldn't happen unless she heard any of the guards, and she hadn't done so for almost the entire time that she had been in the forest. And she knew that Rider would most likely choose a route back that would carry a minimum possibility of running into them. So it looked like they were stuck together.

* * *

They had been walking for a couple of hours when Rider's stomach started making noises, and he stopped. "Well, that's the signal for a lunch break," he said.

Rapunzel frowned. "Lunch break? We need to get back to the kingdom as soon as possible." She held up the satchel slightly, emphasizing that she had some influence over him.

Rider raised an eyebrow. "And when were you expecting that to be?"

She shrugged. "Sometime this evening."

He let out a laugh. "You really don't know much of the area, do you?"

She raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that we're a lot farther than you think. It'll probably take us one or two days to get there."

Her eyebrows shot up. "Two days?"

Rider grinned at her incredulous tone. "Yup. Better start preparing to live off the land, Princess."

Rapunzel felt a new wave of anxiety wash over her. "Um…what exactly does that mean, live off the land?"

"What do you think it means? Eat whatever's available, sleep on the softest ground you can find, pee in the woods…"

She flinched. "I'm not really going to have to do that, am I?"

"Sure you will. What, did you think the animals would have their own bathrooms that we can use?"

"No, of course not. I just…" She trailed off, not sure what to say.

Rider chuckled again. "Ah, the life of a royal. Doesn't compare much to someone who lives out here."

She thought she detected a hint of scorn—or possibly envy?—in his voice, but it quickly vanished as he began to turn his head from side to side. "Anyway, like I said, we need to find something to eat."

Rapunzel drew herself up slightly. "We can keep going."

"I'm hungry, Princess."

"I'm not."

Of course, at that moment, her stomach decided to let out a loud gurgle. She winced as Rider turned around to look at her, and she felt herself go red with embarrassment. Then, he laughed—though it was less of a mocking-her laugh and more of a genuine-amusement laugh. "Well, that settles it, I guess," he said. "C'mon, let's find some fruits or something."

Fruits didn't sound too bad. Rapunzel nodded, and followed as Rider began wandering around the area, casting his gaze around. "Some fruit trees around here," he said to himself.

Rapunzel nodded. "I saw an apple tree earlier today."

"An apple tree? That'd be nice. Do you remember where it was?"

She looked around. "I might be able to find it if I recognized the area. But none of this looks familiar."

"Ah, well. There are more options."

Something caught Rapunzel's eye, and she turned. "Like that?"

Rider looked in the direction she was looking in. "A blackberry bush! Yes, like that."

The two converged on the bush, though Rapunzel made sure to keep her distance from Rider, and keep him in his sight. He didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't seem to mind, and they ate until the bush was nearly picked clean. Unfortunately, there hadn't been a ton of berries to start out with, and though Rapunzel's hunger had been partially satisfied, she was far from full.

Fortunately, Rider was in the same boat. "Well, that was a good find, Princess," he said, "but I think we could use something more substantial."

Rapunzel nodded, before remembering that she was supposed to be more in charge here. She drew herself up and said, in a more authoritative tone, "Yes, I suppose."

Rider cast a look at her, but she was already looking around. "How about these?" she said, noticing another berry bush nearby. The berries weren't familiar to her, but they looked like they could taste okay. They were round and dark, and looked juicy. She plucked one off the bush, held it up, and brought it to her mouth.

"Put that down!"

She started, and looked over at Rider, who was walking towards her with an incredulous expression on his face. "Are you crazy? Those are nightshade berries. Eat those and you won't live to get back to the kingdom."

She stared at the small berry in her hand. Now that she thought of it, she had been warned against suspicious-looking berries in the past—but since she really hadn't gone wandering in the forest much, she had kind of forgotten it.

Rider's expression had changed to condescending. "Really, do you know anything about the forest? There's all sorts of things that could kill you out here."

"I haven't been out here a whole lot," said Rapunzel, stung by his comments.

"Oh, yeah, of course."

She frowned at him. "Don't talk down to me. I've just lived a different life than you."

"Don't I know it." There it was again—that scorn or envy that she had heard before. "Anyway, let me do the foraging from now on."

He turned away, and Rapunzel was tempted to talk back when something occurred to her. He may have been abrasive in his manner of doing so, but Flynn Rider had just saved her life. It hadn't necessarily been in his interest to do so—if she died, he could just take back the satchel and leave her, and when she was found, no one would suspect foul play.

She shuddered at the thought. Like it or not, the most infamous criminal in Corona had just saved her from a terrible fate—and not just her, either. Her parents, Marcus, and almost everyone in the kingdom would be distraught if that had happened to her.

She looked back at him with a new sense of wonder. Was there more to this thief than met the eye?

"Hey, Blondie, you gonna keep just standing there?"

Well, he still was kind of a jerk. But she doubted that she would forget what he had done.


	9. The Lost Princess

The two continued their journey, mostly in silence, though not that Flynn had expected otherwise. He suspected the princess had a range of emotions going through her—she was probably scared but determined to keep a strong face, while at the same time shaken up by her near-death experience. Really, who just ate random berries that they found in the forest? It was a good thing for her that she had run into him.

On a couple of occasions, however, she did try to make conversation. "So…are you from around here?" she asked at one point.

He raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"I'm just curious."

"Hm. Well, sorry, but I don't do back stories."

"Why not?"

His eyes narrowed. "I just don't, okay?"

She fell silent for a little while after that, and he found himself thinking about the reasoning behind her actions. He supposed some curiosity was natural—but still, why would she care about the most wanted thief in her entire kingdom? Marcus hated him, he knew. Wasn't that enough for her, too?

She interrupted his thoughts with another question. At first, he was annoyed…but then it got through to him that her question wasn't solely about him. "Have you ever run into a bear before?"

He turned back to her. "A bear? Why?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Do you have to know the reasons behind all of my questions?"

"Do you have to ask such strange questions?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Just answer me."

He gestured around them. "Being out here? Sure, a couple of times."

"What have you done?"

"Stayed calm, backed away, made sure I wasn't near its den or its cubs or anything. They're pretty harmless if they don't think you're a threat to themselves or their family, but lethal otherwise."

"Yeah, I know."

"Really? Well, I gotta say, I'm surprised your survival knowledge isn't completely nothing."

"I know some things!"

"But not much."

She folded her arms and didn't respond. "So, why the sudden interest?" Flynn asked. "You hear the bear earlier today or something?"

"Oh, I heard it."

Something in her tone made him raise an eyebrow. "What's that mean?"

"It means I was the one who made it angry."

His eyebrows shot up. "You made a bear angry? Wow, I take back what I said; you know nothing about being out here."

"I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Really? I was working under the assumption that you wanted an angry bear coming at you."

She stomped her foot. "Will you stop being so sarcastic for just one minute?"

"Nope. Comes with the deal. You wanna be traveling with me, you gotta deal with it."

She huffed. "I'm beginning to consider going off on my own."

"Yeah, that would work out well. So, how'd you get the bear angry?"

She eyed him, as if deciding whether to respond. "I found myself—_on accident_—between her and her cub."

Flynn whistled. "Yeah, that's a recipe for disaster." He frowned at her. "But how'd you get away?"

Her face fell. "My horse."

"Ah, you were on a horse." He blinked. "Wait, where is it now?"

"He drew the bear away from me. He got its attention, and it ran after him." She stopped walking, and he noticed her head bowed, as if she were fighting off tears. "I don't…I don't know if he's okay or not…"

Yeah, those were definitely tears. The princess was now crying. He sighed; this was awkward. "I'm sure he's fine," he said. "Horses can run fast." He paused. "Although, bears can, too…hm. I dunno."

His words didn't really help; she remained bent over, her body trembling. Her chameleon, Pastel or whatever, extended a tiny green forearm and patted her on the side of the head. It then occurred to Flynn that he could probably get the satchel back at that point…but some part of him told him that that would be a low blow, even for him. "Look," he said, "the sooner we get back to the kingdom, the sooner you can find out what happened to your horse. He's probably back there already, wondering where you are."

She glanced up. "You really think he got away?"

"Sure. Palace horses are made of stern stuff."

He was, of course, a lot less confident than he made himself appear to be—in pretty much any situation that involved an angry bear charging a horse, he'd put his money on the bear. But he was no stranger to stretching the truth. The sooner he got the princess going again, the sooner he could get his satchel back.

And it looked like it worked. Rapunzel nodded, straightened up, and wiped her eyes. "Yeah. Maximus is tough. He'll be fine."

Flynn nodded. "Great. So…let's keep going, then?"

"Yeah."

He strode off, his thoughts now going to the bear. He had taken a route that wasn't too close to the roars he had heard earlier, but if a bear was near, it was foolish to not be on the lookout.

* * *

Marcus glanced up at the sky and sighed. The sun was getting lower in the sky, and the current forest patrol hadn't returned yet. Of course, they weren't scheduled to until a little later, but the fact that they still hadn't meant that there had been no sign of Rider, which would signify three days without any success. He doubted Rider would make a move at this point, but the longer this went on, the more nervous he got. He was glad to see that people did not seem to hold his failure of the night of Rapunzel's birthday against him too much, but he was afraid that, should he fail here, their perceptions of him would change for the worse.

"Captain Marcus?"

He turned to see King Thomas standing before him. "Your Majesty," he said, bowing. "Do you need anything?"

"Have you seen Rapunzel anywhere?"

Marcus straightened up. "Not since she left this morning." He frowned. "Why?"

"Because we haven't seen her since then either."

Marcus blinked. "Have you asked around?"

"A little. I thought you might have an idea."

Marcus nodded, thinking. "Well, let's head over to the stables. If Maximus is back, then we'll know Rapunzel must be, too, and we just haven't run into her."

"Good thinking," said the king.

The two of them strode along in that direction, though Marcus's mind had become more troubled. It was unlikely that anything had happened to Rapunzel…but it was entirely possible that her curiosity and/or rashness had gotten her in trouble. And if that was true, then things would really get bad. But they couldn't know anything for certain. At least not until they got to the stables.

Which they did, just a few minutes later. Upon seeing the king, the stable boys sunk into bows with a chorus of "Good afternoon, Your Majesty."

The king got down to business immediately. "Have any of you seen Rapunzel come in?"

The stable boys looked at each other, shaking their heads. "What about Maximus?" asked Marcus. "Is Maximus around?"

Again, the stable boys looked around. "I haven't seen him," said one.

"Have you all been here all day?" said the king. "Or, at least, since mid-morning?"

"Um," said one of them. "Well, most of us are only hired for the afternoon, sir…"

"Is there anyone who would have been around earlier?"

Another stable boy spoke up. "Graham would. Would you like me to go get him?"

The king nodded. "Yes, please."

The stable boy left, while the rest stood around awkwardly. Marcus waved to them. "You may resume your duties."

They went back to action at his words, though he did notice one or two of them casting glances at him and the king, and suspected they wondered what was going on.

A minute later, the stable boy returned, with another one following him. The new one, Graham, looked older than the others, and Marcus wondered if he was a supervisor or something. "Good afternoon, Yer Majesty, Cap'n," said Graham, bowing to them both.

Marcus dismissed the other stable boy with a "Thank you," as the king spoke to Graham. "Have you seen Princess Rapunzel or Maximus return to the stables today?"

Graham thought. "Can't say ah have. Ah saw them goin' out, but haven't seem 'em come back."

"And you've been watching closely the entire time?"

"Well…" Graham scratched his head sheepishly. "Ah don't know about _closely_, but ah think ah would've noticed if a horse had come back, especially Maximus. People would've been movin' around and such, ya know?"

"So you can say with reasonable certainty that neither Rapunzel nor Maximus have returned?"

"Ah think ah can, Yer Majesty. Ah know fer a fact that Maximus isn't back, anyway." He looked from the king to Marcus. "Is there a problem goin' on? Ah'm sorry if it's not ma place ta ask, but if ah can do anythin' to help…"

"You've been a help already, Graham," said Marcus. "Thank you."

Graham bowed again. "Mah pleasure."

Marcus motioned to the king, whose worry was more evident on his face now, and the two of them left the stables. "We still don't know anything for certain," the captain said. "Rapunzel could be taking her time in the woods."

The king didn't look completely reassured. "We asked her to return by this afternoon, and she said she would. It's not like her to go back on her word."

"Maybe she lost track of the time," said Marcus. "I think it's likely that she's just having a good time with Maximus and Pascal, and doesn't realize that it's time for her to return."

The king frowned. "Maybe. But it will be getting dark soon…"

"Thomas!"

The king and Marcus turned to see Queen Primrose walking towards them. "Rose!" the king said. "Did you have any luck?"

She shook her head as she reached the pair. "No one has seen her. I asked the nobles, the kitchen staff, and even that nice girl in the library."

The king's frown deepened. "Well, she hasn't come back yet. We checked the stables, and no one has seen either Maximus or Rapunzel."

The queen glanced nervously out the window, where the sun was beginning to set. "So she's still out there?"

Both looked quite worried. Marcus began to feel so, too, but managed to conceal it as he said, "Don't worry. It's unlikely that anything has happened to her. Knowing her, she's probably lost track of the time."

"But the sun is starting to set," said the queen.

"Then maybe she's just realized how late it is," said Marcus. "And even if she did get lost, my men are out there patrolling the fore—"

The queen suddenly gasped. "What is it, dear?" said the king.

"Those thieves are out there, too," said the queen, going pale.

Both the king and Marcus caught onto her meaning—if Rapunzel ran into one of those criminals…

"We have to get out there and find her," said the king.

The queen nodded, but Marcus spoke up. "Your Majesty, I share your concern, but I don't think we need to really worry just yet."

"We don't need to worry about our daughter running into one of those criminals?" said the king, almost indignantly. "Who knows what they would do to her?"

Marcus quickly continued. "That forest is big. The chances of that are very small." He hesitated. "Besides…if one of them does find Rapunzel, I don't think he'll hurt her."

"Why not?"

"Well…forgive me, but if you think about it, it would be in his best interests to keep her unharmed. She's…again, forgive me, but she's worth a lot more that way."

"You think they would kidnap her?"

"It's the most likely possibility. Of course, there's still a very small chance of anything like that happening."

The king and queen glanced at each other, the fear not gone from their faces. Marcus suspected they were thinking about the same thing—about the last time when Rapunzel had come dangerously close to being kidnapped, eighteen years ago. So as to not make her worried, they had never told their daughter about it, but they hadn't forgotten it, which was one of the reasons they were so protective of her. The same went for Marcus, too; he knew that there were people out there who would want to kidnap the princess, whether or not they were the same person as the one from all those years ago. "Then what can we do?" asked the queen.

Marcus glanced out the window. "My current patrol should be returning soon. If they haven't seen Rapunzel, and if she hasn't returned by then, I will take a group out and we will search."

* * *

The sun was beginning to set when Rapunzel heard it: a rustling in the trees. "Do you hear that?"

Rider looked around. "Yeah…" He relaxed. "It's probably nothing, though. All that talk about bears has gotten me—"

He stopped talking as a bear cub bounded out of the trees, running several dozen feet before stopping in front of them, gazing at them.

Rapunzel and Rider looked at each other. Then, they heard a louder crashing in the trees, right where the cub had emerged from. Rider said one word. "Run."

With that, they both turned and bolted, hearing the mother bear's noises behind them. Rapunzel desperately hoped her hair wouldn't get caught—by a stray branch or the bear. Ahead of her, Rider turned back. "Come on, faster!"

Rapunzel forced herself to speed up—though Rider, with his longer legs and more experience running, remained ahead of her. Risking a look back, she did a quick scan of the area…and didn't see any bear. Still, she could hear sounds behind her that suggested its presence, and so she didn't plan on slowing down. Not to mention that Pascal's nervousness hadn't abated, and he was still clutching tightly to her shoulder, eyes wide.

She turned back to look ahead, and noticed several things in succession. First, they were emerging from the trees. Second, Rider was not in front of her anymore. And third, there was no ground beneath her feet.

She let out a scream as she fell, but it was only a second before her fall was broken by a small tree growing out of the side of the cliff. She almost lost her balance, but righted herself—and did the same thing when her hair came tumbling down the cliff and off the side of the tree.

On her shoulder, Pascal shuddered, and she turned to him. "Yeah, that was a close one, Pascal…"

"We're not safe just yet."

She looked up to see Rider, who had also landed on the tree. "What do you mean?" she asked.

He pointed upward. "What about the bear?"

They both turned up. Their tree was a few feet below the edge of the cliff, and there was no way to see what was happening over it. But Rapunzel didn't hear anything. No bear roaring, growling, or even shuffling around. "It…it sounds like it's gone," she said.

Rider folded his arms. "We have no way of knowing for sure."

"So what do you suggest? We just stay here?" Rapunzel narrowed her eyes. "Look, if that bear still wanted to harm us, we'd hear it up there. Or see it looking over at us. I don't think it's there."

Rider frowned, and had a sullen expression on his face that suggested that he saw the sense in her argument, but didn't want to admit it. Finally, he sighed and said, "Fine. We'll wait for a couple more minutes, and if we still hear nothing, then we climb back up."

Rapunzel nodded, and so, for the next minute or so, her attention was diverted between looking up at the cliff and throwing glances at Rider. If he wanted to get rid of her and get the satchel, this was an opportunity right here…but he had already proven that he didn't want her dead. Both the incident with the berries and his calling back to her during the bear chase spoke to that.

Eventually, he nodded. "Right. Sounds like it's gone."

Rapunzel cracked a smile of relief, and Rider mirrored it. They took a step back towards the cliff.

And that was when they heard the creaking sound, and felt the tree sink.

Both of them froze. "Oh, no," said Rider.

Rapunzel inadvertently took a step back, and felt the tree sink a fraction of an inch more. "Don't move!" said Rider. "The tree must not be used to such weight, and whenever we step on it, we make it worse."

The tree creaked again, and he lowered himself down on all fours. "Try spreading out your weight a bit," he said. "And make sure not to drop the satchel."

Carefully, Rapunzel did as he suggested, but even that movement caused the tree to drop some more. "What can we do like this?" she said.

"I don't know? Think?" he responded, his voice almost panicked.

With some difficulty, Rapunzel looked behind herself at the cliff. It didn't offer any easy possibilities for climbing, so even if they jumped for it, there was no guarantee they would make it. And if they moved, they would only hasten their demise. But it seemed to be inevitable either way—even though they weren't moving, she could still feel the tree creaking and sliding downwards.

She looked over at Rider. She knew that she looked terrified, but didn't care. "What now?"

He looked back at her—and he was visibly scared, too. "I…I'm not sure."

Rapunzel clung to the tree as it continued to sink, leading them towards a fall that would certainly be fatal. She began to realize that her life was about to end, and immediately felt tears come to her eyes. Why couldn't she have been content with her life as it was? She had had loving parents, great friends, and a wonderful place in life. But she had taken that one route in the forest…and it had led to this. Now, she would die—and so would Flynn Rider. He was a thief, sure, but he was a human being, and one that she had seen a bit of good in. Not that it mattered anymore. "I'm sorry," she said, still crying. "Mom, Dad, Marcus, everyone…" She looked up. "I'm so sorry, Flynn."

He looked back at her. "Eugene."

"What?"

"My name. It's…it's really Eugene Fitzherbert." He shrugged in a resigned manner. "Just thought someone should know."

She smiled sadly at him. If they went down, then at least they could have this small connection. Before something happened to them that not even her magical hair could fix…

She blinked. The thought had come to her at the same time that she saw another small tree hanging off the edge of the cliff out of the corner of her eye…and an idea came to her. "Wait," she said.

Rider—Eugene—looked up. "What?"

She pointed at the tree. "What if we can reach that? We can climb back up to the cliff."

He raised an eyebrow. "But we can't reach that. We'd need some sort of really long rope or…" His eyes went down to her hair, and they widened as he realized what she had in mind. "Will that work?"

"I think it can."

Moving slowly, Rapunzel stood up, making sure to stand near the thickest part of the tree, where her weight could be best supported. Then, gathering her hair up, she tied a loop in it, and prepared to throw it, like a lasso. "That's still a far shot," said Eugene.

"I can make it," she said confidently. Whirling it a few times, she threw, but the tree dropped a little bit more, and her aim was thrown off. Quickly, she pulled her hair back up and tried again, but again, it just fell short. "Hurry!" said Eugene.

Rapunzel forced her body to stop shaking, gathered all her concentration and her strength, aimed, and threw. And this time, the hair managed to catch on to one of the branches. "Yes!" she said, tugging on it to making sure it was secure. It was, and her smile grew. "We're set now." She turned to Eugene. "Grab on."

He blinked. "You sure?"

"Of course I'm sure! Do you want to get off this tree or not?" As if to drive her point home, the tree sunk even further. "Come on!"

Moving nimbly, the thief got up on his feet, bringing the tree down to an almost 45-degree angle. Crossing the distance between them, he wrapped his arms around the princess's waist, and she jumped off, just as, with one more crack, the tree became completely vertical. "Whoo!" yelled Rapunzel, partially from fear, partially from excitement. Sure, this was dangerous, but thrilling, too. Just so long as her hair didn't slip off.

But it held, as the two of them climbed up like it was a rope, finally reaching the second tree. From there, it was a short jog to solid ground. "We made it!" said Rapunzel, feeling her feet on the grass again. "I'm still alive!"

Pascal sagged in relief, which made him lose his balance and topple off her shoulder onto the grass, where he landed unharmed. Next to them, Eugene was breathing more heavily than usual. "That…that was some good work there," he said.

Rapunzel turned to him. "Thank you, Eugene." He flinched slightly. "What, do you not like your own name?"

He hesitated. "My name…well, there's a lot that goes with it."

"What?"

"Er…" He looked up at the sky. "Look, we can't stand around talking. We need to find a place to settle down for the night."

Rapunzel shrugged. "If you say so." She knew he was trying to divert her attention, but he was right; if they weren't going to get back to the kingdom that day, they would do well to find a safe spot to sleep. But she wasn't done with him. After they had settled down, she was determined to find out about this mysterious thief.

* * *

The queen was the first to notice them. Looking out the window, she let out an exclamation, drawing the king and Marcus over to her. Wordlessly, she indicated the group of guards coming back, and the king immediately went down to the stables to meet him, Marcus and the queen quickly following.

The trio reached the stables at about the same time as the returning patrol. "I will get their report," said Marcus, and walked over to William, who had led that group. "William."

William, who had just dismounted his horse, saluted. "Captain Marcus."

"Any sign of Rider?"

"No. I'm sorry, Captain, we still couldn't find him."

Marcus's face darkened briefly before he asked his next question. "What about Princess Rapunzel? Did you see her out there?"

William blinked, evidently not expecting this. "Uh, no, sir. Or at least, I didn't. Were we supposed to be looking for her?"

Marcus shook his head. "I hadn't instructed it. But…" He lowered his voice. "She hasn't returned from her ride this morning."

William's brow furrowed in concern. "That's not good," he said, lowering his voice, too.

"No, it isn't. The king and queen are very worried."

"Do you…do you think something could have happened to her?"

"I can't say anything for certain. But we should get out there and look."

William nodded. "I'll get the men and we'll go back out."

Marcus held up a hand. "Not the same men. Let them rest, and eat, yourself included. But if you could bring me a group of men who aren't as tired, that would be much appreciated."

"I can do that. But, sir, if you think I'm going to stand by while the princess is lost, you're mistaken. I will come with you."

Marcus smiled. "Your dedication is very commendable, William. If you're sure you can go out again, I'd be happy to have you."

William smiled back. "It's my honor, sir."

He left to gather the guards, and Marcus called over the nearest stable boy, who just happened to be Graham, the one from earlier that day. "Get my horse," he said. "I'm going out."

Graham gave a little bow and walked off, as the king and queen came up to the captain. "Any sign of her?" said the king.

Marcus shook his head. "We're going to go out now, and we won't come back without her." He fixed his gaze on both of them. "I know you're worried, and I'll admit, I am a little, too. But right now, the best thing we can do is to have faith that she will be okay."

The king put a hand on his shoulder. "We're trusting you to find her, Captain."

Marcus nodded. "I won't let you down."

Graham led over his new horse, a chestnut named Faustus, and Marcus got on. "Keep an eye out," he said. "If she returns without us, send a sign so we know she's been found."

The king nodded. "We'll send up a floating lantern."

"Sounds good."

A few minutes later, the rest of the guards had arrived and had mounted their own horses. "All right, guys," said Marcus. "The princess is out there somewhere. Look for her and Maximus. If you find her, bring her back here. Any questions?"

The men shook their heads. "Then let's be on our way." Marcus snapped the reins. "Let's go, Faustus!"

And with that, the guards took off into the night.


	10. The Princess and the Thief

After a bit of searching, Rapunzel and Eugene managed to locate a suitable spot for spending the night. It was next to a stream (which meant there was a possibility of getting fish), had a good spot for a fire, and the ground wasn't too hard. "Believe me, out here, this is a luxury," said Eugene.

"Then I guess we're really lucky, huh?" said Rapunzel.

"Uh, yeah, I guess."

After that, he went into the stream to look for fish while Rapunzel set about building a fire. She had had some experience with that; just get the right wood together in the right way and light it—which was made a lot easier by the fact that Eugene happened to have some matches on him. "Survival essentials," he had explained.

Unfortunately, the night also brought mosquitos, which began to buzz around Rapunzel and land on her. But fortunately, this was exactly was Pascal needed for his own dinner. As she set about getting the fire ready, he crawled on her shoulder, back, and head, his keen eyes picking out his prey and his long tongue snapping them up. Eventually, the mosquitos seemed to realize that it wasn't a good idea to be in that area and took off, but by that point, the chameleon had already eaten his fill.

Soon after the fire was blazing and the mosquitos were gone, Eugene returned, a fish in each hand. "Got lucky," he said. "All right, that's one and a half fish for me, half a fish for you."

Rapunzel gave him a look, and he sighed. "Oh, fine. You can have a whole fish."

"Thank you, Eugene."

His reaction to his real name was less severe than before, but it was still there. But this time, she didn't immediately follow up on it, and waited for him to cook the fish—which actually turned out to be quite good. "Well," he said after they had finished, "it's dark, and we've got a lot of traveling to do tomorrow." He yawned. "Time to hit the hay."

Rapunzel sat up. "Hold on," she said. "I'm curious to know more about you. Eugene Fitzherbert, huh?"

He clearly wasn't eager to breach the subject. "Yeah, well, there's not much to tell."

Rapunzel kept her interested expression, and he sighed. "Fine. But like I said, not much—it's the sob story of a poor orphan. First life he ever knew was in the orphanage. Never had much, and all that."

Rapunzel blinked. She was beginning to understand the scornful-slash-envious tone that he had used earlier. He had been raised with almost nothing, and seeing someone on the opposite end of that spectrum was sure to bring up all kinds of feelings for him. "So…that's why you became a thief?"

He looked at her for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah. For someone like me, it just seemed like the best option."

"Why did you change your name?"

His face lightened a bit. "There was a book I used to read to the younger kids, all the time. _The Tales of Flynnigan Rider._ Your classic swashbuckling rogue: brave, good-looking, adventuresome…all that good stuff. I found myself wanting to be more like him."

"Was he a thief, too?"

Eugene's face fell slightly. "Nah. He was really rich, actually. Could do anything that he wanted to. The thieving part…well, like I said, it just kinda came with my own situation."

They were silent for a moment as Rapunzel absorbed this. So, this was the secret behind the infamous Flynn Rider…he was just a poor orphan who wanted more. It was a tragic tale, not a classic good-versus-evil scenario.

"But, uh, don't tell anyone," said Eugene, cutting into her thoughts.

"Why not?"

"'Cause it'll ruin my whole reputation. And, hey, a fake reputation is all a man really has."

Rapunzel smiled. "Okay, fine."

He sat back. "So, there you go. Not much compared to the life of a princess, but…"

Rapunzel sighed. "Well…"

Eugene raised an eyebrow and sat up. "What's that mean?"

"It means…" She hesitated. "I don't know, it's just that…my life seems to be missing something a lot."

"Missing something? What could you be missing?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out. It's actually why I'm here in the first place."

He blinked. "You've lost me."

"Well, I was out for a ride in the woods today, and I saw this path that I hadn't taken before, and…I just got to thinking that maybe I needed some more adventure, some more excitement. So I went down this path, and ended up running into the bear. Then I got separated from Maximus, and, well, that's when I found you."

Eugene cocked his head. "Well, it certainly sounds like you found adventure and excitement."

She looked at him. "I did, didn't I?" She chuckled. "Maybe Marcus was right."

She thought she saw his body stiffen. "The captain? What's he got to do with that?"

"Oh, it's just something he told me a few days ago. He told me that if I wasn't satisfied, I had to go out and find what made me satisfied." She paused, noticing that he hadn't eased up. "Sorry, I forgot that you and he aren't on very good terms."

Eugene snorted. "That's putting it lightly. He'd love nothing more than to see me dangling from a rope."

Rapunzel shuddered. "That's terrible."

"It's how it is. But I suspect you knew that already."

"Well…yeah. But I've never really gotten to know a thief before." She paused. "I know you want to keep your fake reputation, but…maybe I could put in a word for you, or something."

He blinked. "Why?"

"Just because…I don't like the idea of you…you know."

He scratched his head. "Uh, that's nice of you, I guess. But I can take care of myself."

"Marcus is a capable captain. You shouldn't underestimate him."

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, of course."

"Of course what?"

"You're defending him."

"Sure I am. He's been my best friend for my whole life."

Eugene raised an eyebrow. "And…?"

"And what?"

"Come on, I've heard what people have said." He looked at her meaningfully, and Rapunzel felt like she was back in the ballroom on the night of her birthday. "Have you set a date yet?"

Her mood took a downhill turn. "Don't assume things," she said.

"Is it assuming if everyone knows about it?"

"It is if it's not true."

That caught him off guard. "Huh?"

"Marcus and I are not in love. Never have been."

"Huh," he said again. "Hm. Okay, then."

She blinked. "That's it?"

"What's it?"

"That's all you're going to say about that?"

"Why should I say more?"

She hesitated. "Because everyone else has."

He grinned. "Well, in case you haven't noticed, I'm not everyone else."

"No, you're not." She sighed. "People…people are just kind of disappointed."

He snorted. "Disappointed? Why?"

"They really wanted us to get together. And they had it set in their minds that we were."

"So what?"

"So we disappointed them. We let the rumors and postulations get out of hand, and didn't set things straight until it was pretty late. It was irresponsible."

Eugene shrugged. "Maybe. But it's not like everyone's perfect." He laughed. "Heck, look who's talking. We all make mistakes."

She nodded, reminded of her having said similar words to Marcus after his own failure. Maybe she should take her own advice. "That's true."

"Of course it is. I said it."

She snorted. "And you're right about everything?"

"Pretty much." He hesitated. "Also…I mean, I've heard a bunch of stuff about you. Well, obviously; it's how I knew about all that you-and-the-captain stuff."

"And what of it?"

He grinned. "It's all really positive. The people love you. Even if you disappoint them, they'll get over it eventually."

She smiled. "Thanks. That's good to hear."

"It's always good to know that you're liked."

"Does that…" She paused, and he raised an eyebrow. "Does that have anything to do with why you saved my life earlier today?"

He blinked. "When?"

"You stopped me from eating that berry."

"Oh." He shrugged. "I dunno, that was just by instinct. Er, not that I wanted you to die."

"It would have resolved the issue for you."

"Um, I guess. But hey, come on. I'm not _completely _heartless."

She smiled at him. "I'm beginning to wonder if you are at all."

"Well, come on. I've stolen all sorts of things from all sorts of people. I've lied too many times to count, and betrayed a fair number of people. I'm not exactly what you'd call a good person."

"Are you proud of what you've done?"

"Eh?"

"Are you?"

He hesitated. "I dunno about proud…but it's how I've gotten by."

He did seem more troubled than his words would suggest, but before Rapunzel could press the issue, he changed the subject. "So, what was it like growing up with that old stick-in-the-mud of a captain?"

Rapunzel let out a laugh. "You wouldn't be calling him that if you had seen him outside of his duties. Marcus has two sides to him: the serious captain who's devoted to his job, and the playful friend who loves making jokes."

"Playful? Jokes? You can't be serious."

"Sure I can. He takes after his father that way." Her face fell. "His father was a great guy. He was always cheerful around us when we were kids, and even teenagers, but I knew that he still possessed a single-minded devotion to the kingdom."

Eugene nodded. "That does sound like a good captain. Think I had a few run-ins with him myself. Never considered him a friend…but couldn't help but admire some of his qualities. That was…Julius?"

"Yeah. Marcus absolutely idolized him. His death was a huge blow, and I don't think he's completely gotten over it."

"Really?"

Rapunzel nodded. "He's a lot more sensitive than he lets on."

Eugene chuckled. "So I'm not the only one around here with a fake reputation…"

"Well, it's all a man really has. So you can't tell anyone about this."

He grinned wryly. "So you'll keep my secret if I keep his?"

She frowned; she didn't like the sense of that; it was if both of them had something hanging over the other. "It doesn't have to be like that," she said. "Just…we'll both keep each other's secrets."

He looked slightly taken aback, but shrugged. "All right. Besides, with any luck, I won't see him again."

She looked up at him. "What are you planning to do after this?"

"Pretty much what you'd think. Go somewhere, sell the crown, live off that."

She looked down at the satchel. "Where?"

He chuckled. "Hold up, there. I can't tell you _all_ of my secrets. Just know that it's far away from here."

She felt a slight pang at the thought that she wouldn't see him after this. He might have been a thief, but getting to know him had been really interesting. "Well…hope things go well for you."

He raised his eyebrows. "Wait, you actually want me to get away?"

"I…it's hard to say." If Marcus caught him, he wouldn't have to deal with a crushing failure, like the one that had brought him down the night of her birthday. But if Eugene got away, he wouldn't have to spend the rest of his life in prison—or have it cut short.

He shrugged. "Well, we'll have to see what happens. What will be will be and all that."

"I guess."

They sat in silence for another moment before he let out a yawn. "Well, we'd better get some sleep. Gotta keep going tomorrow."

"Oh…right."

He lay back, his head up against a nearby log. "You can probably use the satchel for a pillow," he said.

Rapunzel looked down at the satchel. "Yeah."

After a moment of silence, Eugene yawned again and closed his eyes. "All right, good night."

"Good night, Eugene." She hesitated. "Oh, and…"

He opened one eye. "Yeah?"

"For the record, I like Eugene Fitzherbert better than Flynn Rider."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really? You'd be the first. But, uh, thanks."

"You're welcome."

He closed his eyes again, and Rapunzel set about settling down herself. As he had suggested, the satchel made an okay pillow, so long as she didn't put her head on the crown inside. Next to her, Pascal curled up. "It's been a crazy day, Pascal," she said.

The chameleon nodded, and cast an eye in Eugene's direction, then sent a questioning look at her. "I think…" Rapunzel lowered her voice to be barely audible. "I think he's all right."

Pascal didn't look as though he shared the exact same sentiments, but was too tired to press the matter, and closed his eyes. Rapunzel followed suit…though the swirling thoughts in her mind meant that she would not fall asleep for a while.

* * *

She wasn't the only one. Flynn (he still thought of himself with that name) found that sleep did not come easily. That was the longest conversation he had had with anyone in a long time, and it was about some pretty heavy stuff. And so, despite his efforts to keep his thoughts under control, they went in all sorts of directions, many of which he didn't want them to go in. For instance, _was_ he really pleased with what he had done? He hadn't lied when he had said that thieving had been the best option for a poor orphan—especially one who was so good at it—but that didn't mean he was entirely happy.

_Well, I don't have to be happy just now,_ he tried to tell himself. _I just have to wait until I can get that crown back. Then…then I'll be living like Rapunzel._ Just hopefully, without that sense of something being missing that the princess had expressed.

He had to admit, she was one of the most intriguing people he'd ever met. She had everything that he had ever wanted, but still wasn't entirely satisfied. He had a hard time imagining that. And she was particularly trusting for someone who was stuck with the infamous Flynn Rider.

Come to think of it, he had been pretty trusting, too, what with giving her his back story and all. Sure, he hadn't told her all of the details, but she had gotten the picture. He thought he had even detected some sympathy in her expression. Part of him didn't want her sympathy, but the other part was almost touched that someone like her would actually think that he was worth caring about.

He shook his head. Man, he was going soft. The old Flynn Rider—who had only become old slightly earlier that day—would just take the satchel from her right now and be off. They weren't _too_ far from the kingdom, so if she just kept going in the direction they had been going in, she was bound to run into one of the patrolling guards sooner or later. They were probably out looking for her at this point, anyway. Sure, they hadn't been able to find _him_, but he had been actively trying to not be found. She would be actively trying to be found. Yeah, her odds would be good at this point.

He cracked an eye open. _Could_ he take back the satchel right now? Or, if not the satchel, the crown inside it? That was all he really needed, anyway. He probably could; she looked asleep, her breathing steady. Of course, there was no way to tell for sure. If he called her name lightly and she was awake, she'd get suspicious. But even if she wasn't asleep, he might be able to sneak around, get behind her, and reach into the satchel…

He was starting to move when an image sprang unbidden into his mind: how Rapunzel would react if he did do that. She'd probably be pretty devastated, after all, he'd have betrayed her trust.

_Well, what should she have expected?_ said a part of him. _I'm Flynn Rider._

_Not to her,_ another part of him claimed. _To her, I'm Eugene Fitzherbert._ Someone he hadn't been for years…and, to be honest, it wasn't bad to take up that mantle again, if only for a short time. It reminded him of other times…better times? He had had much less money…but he remembered the other kids at the orphanage. They had been younger than him, so he hadn't been able to connect with them completely, but they had been fun to be around. They had always seemed to bring his mood up…

He shook his head again. Jeez, now he was _reminiscing_. He hadn't done that for years. What was it about this princess that was changing him like this?

He heaved a small sigh. Well, it would all be over in a day or two. Most likely one. They were close enough so that she could probably be confident enough in her ability to get back after just a few more hours of travel. Just so long as they didn't run into any more bears or anything.

Repeating to himself that it would all be over in a little while, he was somehow able to drift off to sleep…but not without feeling an odd sense of disappointment…

* * *

Mother Gothel was preparing to settle down for the night when she caught movement at her window. Swiftly, she made her way over and saw a crow perched on the sill. She knew this crow; it had delivered messages to her before, from someone who had some good information to give.

As usual, it had a message tied to its leg. She untied it, unrolled it, and read it over.

Her eyes widened. The princess was lost in the forest? This was something new…and something certainly worth knowing. She had to act quickly; she couldn't let anything happen to Rapunzel if she wanted to keep using her magic. Yet…at the same time, this could be the opportunity she had been waiting for. Maybe she could snatch up the princess now, and no one would have any idea that she was behind it. She'd still have to work out the details, but there were definitely all sorts of possibilities. This was it. This was what she had been waiting for. She would resolve everything then and there.

But she needed go get going. She dismissed the crow, then put on her dark traveling cloak. No doubt the guards were also out looking for Rapunzel, so she had to find the princess before they did. After gathering a few small items—one of which was a particularly sharp knife—she lifted up the trapdoor in the tower and headed out.

* * *

Marcus was fighting back a rising panic that was threatening to take him over. He and his men had been searching the forest for a couple hours, but they were no closer to finding Rapunzel than they were to finding Rider. He tried not to think about what that would imply—if Rapunzel were okay, she'd be looking for them and calling out for them, right? And wouldn't he have heard that by now?

He told himself to calm down. The forest was a big place; she could be anywhere. But he had split his men up, and there hadn't been any report from them yet, or a floating lantern signaling that she was safe and returned to the castle. _Keep calm,_ he kept repeating. _Dad wouldn't have lost his cool in a situation like this, and you won't, either._

He had just finished thinking that for the umpteenth time when he heard something shuffling around, not too far ahead of him. "Hello?" he called, before remembering that it could be Rider instead of Rapunzel, and silently cursing himself for giving away his position.

But whoever it was didn't seem to be repelled by his call. In fact, the noises got closer, and Marcus felt his heart rise. Could this be Rapunzel, just too tired to respond to him?

A figure emerged from the trees, and he started. It was Maximus. "Maximus!" he said, riding over and dismounting. "Where have you been all this time?"

The white horse looked exhausted. He had a few scrapes and a lot of leaves and twigs stuck to his body. "You look like you've been through a lot," said Marcus.

Then, he noticed a more sizable scratch on the horse's hindquarters. They looked like…almost like claw marks. Fear instantly surged up in him, but he forced it down. "Maximus," he said, struggling to keep his voice calm, "where did that come from?"

Maximus only whinnied in response. "I don't…I don't know what that means," said Marcus. "Look…did…where's Rapunzel?"

The horse shook his head, eyes worried. "You don't know?" said Marcus. "What about…what about whatever gave you that scratch? Did it…" He took a breath. "Did it get to Rapunzel?"

Maximus shook his head, and Marcus felt a small wave of relief. "Good boy. But…you lost her?"

The horse nodded. "Can you show me where?"

Maximus steeled himself, then nodded. "Thanks," said Marcus, patting him on the nose. He swung back up on Faustus and followed the white horse through the trees, a small bit of hope making its presence known. He had a lead now.

The three of them continued through the trees for several minutes before Maximus came to a stop. "This was the place?" said Marcus, and Maximus nodded.

Marcus looked around. There was no sign of Rapunzel anywhere—and it was too dark to see something like a bit of fabric from her dress, or a strand of hair that had fallen off. (Though Marcus was pretty sure her magic hair didn't fall off at all.) "You've searched the area?" said Marcus, and Maximus nodded again. "Hm. Well, maybe she's moved since then."

For another while, he, Maximus, and Faustus scoured the area, Marcus calling out Rapunzel's name from time to time. But their efforts were fruitless, and they became more and more tired as the time went on. Finally, when Maximus looked like he was on the verge of collapse, Marcus called a halt to their efforts. "You're exhausted," he said to the white horse. "And that scratch doesn't look too good, either." He shook his head, blinking several times in a futile effort to stave off his own fatigue. "We…we might need to return to the castle."

Maximus looked at him, and he could tell that the horse was as reluctant to do so as he was. "I know," said the captain. "She's still out there."

His anxieties resurfaced in full, and he found himself bending over, almost overcome. Then, his mind shifted, and he thought about what other people might say: his father, Rapunzel, even Tara. He had done everything he could, and he was at a disadvantage in the dark. He would do better when it was light out, and he had had some rest. And besides…Rapunzel was strong. She could make it for a night out here.

He straightened up in his saddle. "Yeah, we have to go back," he said to Maximus. "We've both done everything we can. Right now, we need to get back, so that we can both get some rest and you can get that scratch looked at." When the horse still looked troubled, he sighed. "Maximus, you know Rapunzel as well as I do. She's strong, and she can manage on her own."

The horse whinnied in a resigned tone. "C'mon," said Marcus, and, slowly, they made their way back to the castle. He had instructed the other guards to return themselves when they became spent, too, and so he didn't expect any others to still be out at the time. Except for maybe William—so long as he didn't push himself too far. He was the kind of person to do that.

Fortunately, he ran into William as he was returning. "Captain!" said William, and his gaze went to Maximus. "You found Maximus?"

Marcus nodded. "But not Rapunzel."

William sagged slightly, and Marcus realized how tired he must be; he had been on patrol almost constantly since early that afternoon. "Come on, William, we're going back," he said.

"What? Without the princess?"

Marcus heaved a sigh. "We don't have a choice. We're all exhausted already, and the dark isn't helping. The best thing for us right now is to rest up so that we can be ready to go again tomorrow."

William yawned, his body still sagging. "I suppose," he said, his tone resigned. "But I don't like it."

"Neither do I. But we have to trust that Rapunzel will be fine."

William gave a small smile. "She is a tough nut to crack."

Marcus returned the smile. "That she is."

* * *

They returned to the stables to find Graham the stable boy still there. "You should get some sleep, Graham," said Marcus, suppressing a yawn.

"Jus' wanted ta make sure you all made it back, Cap'n," he said. "You two're the last ones."

"Thank you. Where are the king and queen?"

Graham gestured, and Marcus saw them sitting on a hay bale, leaning up against the wall, fast asleep. "They wouldn't go back without news of the princess," he said in a low voice. "Ah take it ya didn't find her?"

Marcus shook his head. "We'll resume our search tomorrow morning, but in the meantime, the best thing we can do is rest up so that we can perform our best then." He gestured to Maximus. "Also, Maximus has a bit of an injury that needs attention. Would it be possible for you to grab someone to look at it?"

"O' course, Cap'n."

Graham led Maximus away as Marcus looked over at the sleeping king and queen. With a small smile, he noticed that they had fallen asleep holding hands. "Don't worry," he said quietly. "I'll get her back. You'll have your daughter back before you know it."

He yawned widely, and, too tired to drag himself up to his room, he sat down on a nearby pile of hay, leaned back, and closed his eyes.


	11. Only Human

Rapunzel woke up to the familiar feeling of a small scaly foot on her face. She yawned. "Good morning, Pascal," she said, blinking.

For a moment, she felt the grass under her and the lack of a pillow beneath her head, and was confused. Then, the events of the previous day came back to her, and she sat up, getting her bearings. Yes, she was still in the area where she and Eugene had settled down for the night. The satchel was still right next to her. Eugene was—

She looked around. Where was he? He had been right across from her when they had gone to sleep the previous night. Now, though, there was only an indent in the grass indicating where he had lain.

A brief feeling of panic came upon her, and her hand went to the satchel. It was still there. She patted it, and, sure enough, the crown was still there, too. She relaxed, and with that feeling of relaxation came one of guilt, too; she shouldn't have doubted him. But, then again, he was a thief…but she thought she had come across something else in their discussion last night…

Her feelings were complicated. She couldn't dislike him after the events of the previous day, but it was hard to forget that, once this was all over, he would take back the crown and resume his old ways.

Well, that wouldn't be for a few more hours, at least. She stood up, looking around. "Eugene?" she called.

"Still using that, are you?"

She jumped slightly and turned around to see him approaching her, two small items in his hands. "It's your name, isn't it?" she said.

"It was."

He looked almost solemn, so Rapunzel endeavored to change the subject. "Where did you go off to?"

"Just getting some breakfast." He tossed one of the items at her, and she caught it. It was an apple—a particularly good-looking one, too. "Sorry if I worried you."

"Oh, it's fine. Thanks."

She bit into the apple. It was indeed a good one, and she thought of Maximus with a pang, hoping that he was all right. Even if he was, though, he was likely to be concerned for her—as were her parents and everyone else at the castle. She sighed, thinking of them.

Eugene raised an eyebrow, looking up from his own apple. "Not to your liking?"

"What? Oh, no, it's delicious. I'm just…just thinking."

"Hm. About what?"

"About my parents and my friends. They're probably worried sick right now."

He shrugged. "Probably. But they'll be fine once you get back."

"Yeah."

They finished their apples in silence, and Eugene tossed his core into the woods. "Well, let's get a move on."

Rapunzel nodded, and picked up the satchel. The sooner she got back, the less everyone would be worrying about her.

Of course, the less time she would spend with Eugene, too.

* * *

That nagging feeling of worry that had come to Tara the day before was back. Ever since the queen had asked her if she knew where Rapunzel was yesterday afternoon (with a worried expression herself), Tara had begun to wonder if something was wrong. She hadn't seen the princess since then—not that she saw her every day, but it wasn't uncommon for Rapunzel to come into the library, or for Tara to get a glimpse of her in the halls. Was it possible that something had happened to her?

Unfortunately, Tara's information-gathering resources were limited, and she could only keep doing her job while hoping to pick something up from surrounding chatter—and have faith that, if something had happened to Rapunzel, there were people who could take care of it. Which most likely meant Marcus.

The captain was another person she hadn't seen in a little while—but she knew that he had been hard at work trying to track down the thief of Rapunzel's crown. People had been talking about it, and praising him for his efforts. Still…they didn't know what she did, that Marcus had been briefly crippled by his failure, and, for all she knew, was vulnerable to it again. Was it possible that, if something happened to the princess, he would find himself unable to act again?

She shook her head. That didn't seem right. For one, she knew that he cared about Rapunzel—even if they weren't in love, she had seen him go out to her on the balcony on the night of her birthday, and the fact that Rapunzel was able to pick him up with the right words on the following day spoke to their friendship. Tara couldn't imagine Marcus standing aside if Rapunzel was, in fact, in danger. For another, she had heard how determined he had become in the past few days, and she didn't think that that determination would go away so easily.

She had to have faith in Marcus. Yes, he had his flaws, but she was coming to terms with that. Like she had told him herself, everyone made mistakes, and no one could expect him to be an exception. And, after all, Marcus was the captain of the royal guard. He would not have been appointed to the position if the king and queen did not have full confidence in his abilities.

"Tara?"

Tara was brought out of her reverie by the voice of one of her supervisors, a tall thin man who, like her, sported a pair of glasses. "Yes?"

"Could you go down to Sir Thatch's study and remind him that he has a small handful of books that were due to be returned yesterday?"

"Certainly, sir."

"Thank you. If I recall correctly, the titles were…ah, what were they again…?"

"I think I remember, sir. They were the ones concerning the recent mathematicians?"

"Those were the ones, yes."

"I delivered those to him. I'll recognize them."

"Will you? Excellent. Responsible as always."

She smiled. "Thank you, sir."

"Well, you know me, I give credit where credit is due. But do get on that, won't you? I expect you may have a bit of a hard time prying them out of his hands."

She let out a laugh. "I know what you mean, sir. Is anyone else waiting on those books?"

Her supervisor sighed. "No…so it's likely you'll be returning empty-handed. But I'd like you to pay him a visit in any case."

"Of course."

She made her way to the doors and exited the library, walking down the hallway in a route that she had become familiar with over the years. Sir Thatch did, indeed, like to take out books from the library, but returning them was a different matter. She fully expected him to tell her, when she asked for them, that he needed them for another few days, and would it be possible to extend the loan period? Her supervisor might not be too happy, but it was the policy of the library to accommodate such requests, unless the books in question had been requested by someone else. Since that was not the case with the current ones, there wouldn't be anything preventing her from allowing such an extension.

She got to his door a few minutes later, and was raising her hand to knock when she heard voices on the other side. At first, she wondered if she should wait—she didn't want to interrupt whatever was going on—but she soon realized that, if she waited for Sir Thatch to be done with his conversation, she could be standing outside his door for hours. And she had other work to deal with. So she brought her hand to the door and rapped on it.

"Oh, just a moment," came Sir Thatch's muffled voice from his study. "Who is it?"

"It's Tara, sir."

"Tara! One moment…"

She heard the usual sound of him shuffling around, navigating the giant mess of the room, before the door opened. "Good to see you, Tara," he said. "What can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to remind you that you have a couple books that were due yesterday. My supervisor was wondering if you were done with them."

"Ah. Er, which ones would those be?"

"Those were the ones on the mathematicians."

"Ah, yes, those. Er, just a moment." He retreated into his study. "Please, come in."

Tara stepped in, and her eyes fell upon Thatch's guests, who were sitting in chairs that were barely squeezed into the surrounding mess. They were both men, most likely other academics. One of them she didn't know, a man who looked older than Sir Thatch, whose wrinkled head was almost entirely devoid of hair. The other one she did know—but wasn't happy to see. It was Lord Basil, a haughty man with slick black hair and a goatee, both of which had streaks of grey in them. He had been one of the people who had glared at her for dancing with Marcus on the night of Rapunzel's birthday—which may have been in part due to the fact that he was married to Lady Olive, one of the castle's biggest gossips. Upon catching his hard gaze, Tara felt herself go red, and she turned back to Sir Thatch. "Do you need help finding them, sir?" she asked.

"No, no, I've got it." He paused. "Although…if those are the books I think they are…I may need to borrow them for a little longer."

Ah, there it was. "That's fine, sir."

"Thank you, Tara. I knew you'd be accommodating. And so…" He pulled out a medium-sized volume from the mess on his desk. "I don't have to send you back empty-handed. I believe I have used this one to the extent that I plan on using it." He handed it to her…then looked at it. "Wait…oh, no, I'm sorry, not this one." He turned back to his desk. "I apologize, just give me a moment."

"Of course, sir."

As Thatch continued to root through his belongings, Tara tried to decide if she should acknowledge the others' presences. Some of the nobles didn't like interacting with people of the serving class like her—and she was fairly certain Lord Basil was one of those people—but she had no way of knowing what the other one thought. He looked friendly enough…but it was hard to tell.

Fortunately, he solved the problem for her. "Tara, is it?" he said, getting to his feet. "You work in the library?"

She nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Yes, I may have seen you there once or twice…or maybe it was someone else." He scratched his head. "Anyway, I haven't had the opportunity to introduce myself." He held out a hand. "Sir Fuddleston."

Tara fought back a laugh, and managed to pass off her smile as a simple polite reaction. "Pleased to meet you," she said, shaking his hand. "I apologize for interrupting your conversation."

Sir Fuddleston sat back down. "Not at all," he said. "It's good for us to take a break every now and then, collect our thoughts, make sure they're all there." He smiled. "Maybe even give the conversation a chance to take us in a new direction. Maybe once we've restarted it, we'll focus on something different, like—"

"The recent conduct of Captain Marcus," said Lord Basil. His voice was smooth, but highly aristocratic, and did not give off an appealing vibe. "I had just mentioned how he is acting remarkably unlike a true captain of the guard should."

By his expression, Tara guessed that he was saying this to get at her, and resisted the urge to clench her fists. "Oh, you only made a passing comment about that," said Sir Fuddleston.

"That doesn't mean it does not hold with my beliefs," replied Basil, keeping one eye on Tara. "Crushing people's hopes, letting a thief get away with the princess's crown, and now he may have let her get lost in the forest."

"He's only human, sir," said Tara.

Basil narrowed his eyes. "If I wanted your opinion, girl, I would have asked for it."

"Now, don't be like that, Basil," said Thatch, looking up from his desk. "She's entitled to her views."

"Which are obviously biased," Basil retorted. "You know that the captain has a flawless reputation with the young women." He paused. "Especially those of the lower class. It's a classic case of desiring power; they don't have it, so they conjure up fantasies in which it is given to them."

"Really, Basil," said Thatch, his tone reprimanding, "there's no need to attack Tara like that."

"It's the truth."

Tara steeled herself. "Not quite, sir."

Basil raised an eyebrow, though she could tell he was concealing anger at being contradicted. "Oh? How so?"

"I don't think the captain is flawless, sir. I know he has some faults."

"Indeed? And you are still willing to defend him?"

"Of course. He's our captain."

"That means nothing."

"It means he was appointed to the position by the king and queen, who believed in them, and if we can't trust their judgment, then whose can we trust?"

Basil smiled. "You do not believe that his appointment was a result of his parentage? His father was captain; it would not have gone over well if he had not been appointed, regardless of his skill level."

"I disagree, sir."

"Yet you have nothing to back it up." He leaned forward. "I recommend you reexamine your views before speaking out again."

"I can back it up. He has had many successes in the past, and even if he has had a few failures, isn't that bound to happen to everyone? You can't expect him to be perfect; no one is. Why should we seize onto every little fault and blow it up? He's got a hard job, and we have to remember that."

Basil bristled. "Watch your impudence, girl. Don't think you have an understanding of what it means to be a—"

"Basil!" said Thatch sharply. "Calm down. If you wish to argue with her, then kindly do it elsewhere. I do not appreciate this kind of dialogue in my study."

Basil narrowed his eyes until it almost looked like he was squinting, but folded his arms and became silent. "Here we go," said Thatch, picking up another book. "This is the one I was looking for." He gestured to Tara. "Allow me to see you out."

Tara knew that wasn't necessary, given that she was only a few feet from the door, but she nodded, guessing that Sir Thatch had something else in mind.

She was right. As soon as the pair of them had stepped out, Sir Thatch closed the door and looked at her. "I apologize for Basil's behavior," he said. "His wife is still upset about the events from Princess Rapunzel's birthday, and he may be taking it out on you. Though I have to say, you did a fine job of standing up for yourself."

"Thank you, sir."

His gaze grew more serious. "Although, I hope you meant what you said. You must know that there are some things to the captain that you may not find appealing."

"I do know that, sir."

He looked at her curiously. "Hm. Your tone suggests you may know more than I imagine…" He shook his head. "Nevertheless, I will repeat my warning from the other day; you must be careful of your feelings, for they may lead you to an unfortunate circumstance. Even if Captain Marcus is not to be engaged to the princess—and I will admit even I did not see that coming—he is much more likely to choose someone closer to him in class. My views on these matters are not as strong as Lord Basil's, but I am aware of the general situation, and that is my opinion on it."

Tara nodded. "I understand."

"Good. But, also like I have said, you're a strong person, and you'll get through it. Now, I'm sure you have more to do, and I must continue my own discussion."

"Of course, sir. I will tell my supervisor that you wish to keep those books for a longer period of time."

"Thank you, my dear. I hope to see you soon."

"I hope so too."

He smiled at her, then retreated back into his study, and Tara found herself wrestling with her feelings yet again. Logically, she did not doubt Sir Thatch's statement—Marcus was unlikely to go for someone like her. But that didn't mean she should think less of him. The incident concerning his depression had given her a new view on him, and that was that he was a human, with his own set of strengths and weaknesses. He was still kind, charming, and, for the most part, determined. If there was a problem, he could still throw himself at it. And besides, if he didn't have any faults, he really wouldn't be that interesting. So even if Rapunzel was lost in the forest—which may have just been speculation on the part of Lord Basil—Marcus was the man to set things right. After all, who else would?

* * *

Flynn continued to lead the princess through the woods, his ears more alert for the sounds of the guards—just because he was on better terms with the princess didn't mean running into a guard was a risk-free situation. Could be just the opposite, in fact—if a guard saw him with Rapunzel, he'd probably assume that Flynn had kidnapped her, and might try to shoot him on sight. Fortunately, the route that he had chosen was proving itself to be, as he had hoped, guard-free, and he was able to pass the time chatting with Rapunzel in a relatively relaxed frame of mind. It was just the two of them—Pascal the chameleon had dozed off, for whatever reason (Flynn suspected he, also, had struggled with sleep the previous night). "So how's it living with hair like that?" he asked at one point. "Probably gets all over the place."

She nodded. "It does, if I'm not careful and it's not braided."

"Braided?"

"Yeah. There's a way to braid up my hair so that it only goes down to about my ankles."

He snorted. "_Only_. You're the only person who would say that."

"Well, when you've lived your whole life with such long hair…"

"Why is it so long, anyway?"

"Because of the flower, apparently."

"Flower?"

"Right. My parents told me that, when my mom was pregnant with me, she got sick. So she was fed a magic flower that cured her, and its power must have gotten into me."

"Oh, that's right…doesn't your hair have magic healing powers or something?"

"Yep."

He grinned. "That's impressive."

"It's allowed me to help all sorts of people. If they get hurt or sick, I can heal them."

"Bet that keeps you busy."

"Yeah. I was _really_ busy when I was younger—got called to help all over the place—and so my parents decided that people could only ask for my help in really serious circumstances, or when I don't have a whole lot to do. That way, I'm not constantly exhausted, and the doctors in the kingdom have something to do."

"Sounds fair."

"Yeah. And it's all thanks to Miss Gothel."

He raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"This woman that I know. She's the one who taught me about my powers."

"What? How did she know?"

Rapunzel shrugged. "She's smart. She knows a lot of stuff."

"Uh-huh." There was something about her that struck Flynn as mildly suspicious—but then he reminded himself that he was hardly one to judge. "So, what, is she one of the studious castle nobles or something?"

Rapunzel shook her head. "No, actually. She lives alone, out here in the woods. I come to visit her every so often. She says that she likes her privacy, but…I can't help but wonder if she gets lonely."

Flynn flashed a grin. "I wouldn't worry about that. I think she's fine."

"Really? How do you know?"

"Well, I've got some experience with people who are more the loner type myself."

Rapunzel raised an eyebrow. "What, you mean you?"

"That so hard to believe?"

"Well…I actually wonder if you ever get lonely."

Flynn was about to dismiss the idea—but then images came to him, similar to the ones from the previous night…how he had always had fun with the other kids in the orphanage, how their smiles had always made his day…

He shook his head. That was all behind him now. "Nah, loneliness isn't a problem for me," he said.

He wasn't sure if he had convinced her, though. And, truth be told…he wasn't sure if he had convinced himself.

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: If anyone knows where I got Sir Fuddleston's name from, a big kudos to you.**

**This chapter may have been a little dull…but things will pick up soon.**


	12. The Tower and the Bar

**A/N: Time to draw on another big scene from the movie…**

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

Talking about Miss Gothel reminded Rapunzel of the conversation that she had had with her the day before her birthday, when Miss Gothel had warned her against men, and how they could be deceiving and heartless. If she could see her now, she'd have a fit.

But she couldn't be completely right. Wasn't it possible that some men—well, okay, she was thinking of Eugene, here—truly had good hearts? She really wanted to believe it was. If even the thief turned out to be all right, then there was hope for everyone. Miss Gothel probably had just had some bad experiences, and it had turned her sour towards men.

Rapunzel began to get ideas as she walked along. Maybe, when she went to see Miss Gothel again, she could suggest that she meet some of the people back at the castle. Maybe she could be drawn out of her tower, and come to like people better. Sure, she had said that she didn't mind being alone—but to only see one person every two weeks? That seemed like a bit much—or rather, not enough. And maybe she was like Eugene, claiming she wasn't lonely and trying to hide it, but, in reality, maybe she was. Rapunzel wasn't completely convinced that loneliness wasn't a problem for the thief. Maybe it was the same way for Miss Gothel.

She looked around. Thinking about the older woman must have gotten her mind in a certain state; the surrounding area looked a lot like the place where her tower was located.

She blinked. Wait, it didn't just look that way…she knew that moss-covered rock. And that slightly-leaning tree. "Hey," she said.

Eugene turned. "Hm?"

"I think…I think I know this place."

He raised his eyebrows. "You do?"

"Yeah. Hang on."

She walked off in another direction, looking for the familiar wall of ivy that hid Miss Gothel's tower from the rest of the world. It didn't take her long to find. "Yes! There!" She pointed.

Eugene walked up to her. "There what?"

"I know that! That's the…here, I'll show you."

She grabbed his hand and led him over to the ivy. "See this ivy?"

"Yeah…"

"Watch this."

She pushed it back to reveal the cave hidden beneath it, and Eugene blinked. "Wow. Wouldn't have thought there was anything behind it."

"I know! This is actually where Miss Gothel's tower is." She smiled. "I might as well show you; it's beautiful."

She pulled him through the ivy, and through the short passage that followed. A moment later, they emerged on the other side, and Rapunzel grinned. "Great, isn't it?"

Eugene was looking at the sight with an expression that, if it wasn't awe, was pretty close. It really was a beautiful view—a carefully constructed tower situated against a waterfall backdrop. It was one of the reasons she looked forward to her meetings with Miss Gothel. "That is something," he said.

It was then that Rapunzel became conscious that his hand was still in hers. She looked down at it at the same time that he did—and they both let go at the same time, looking away from each other. She felt herself getting red, and said, "Yeah, uh, it really is nice."

"Right." He cleared his throat. "Hey, wait…how do you get in? I don't see a door or anything."

She looked back up, glad that they weren't dwelling on the previous moment. "Oh, there's a secret passageway."

Eugene raised his eyebrows. "Really?"

"Yeah, it's towards the back of the tower. Leads to a trapdoor that lets you into the room at the top."

"Huh. That's cool."

"It is."

The awkward silence came back, before Eugene cleared his throat again. "So, uh, should we keep going?"

"Oh…oh, yeah."

He turned and went back into the cave. She followed, but not without a last look back at the tower. _One day, I'll come visit you again, Miss Gothel,_ she thought, _and I'll show you how great people can be._

* * *

At the moment, Mother Gothel was wandering the area right outside her tower, in a bad mood. She had spent a nearly sleepless night searching for Rapunzel in the forest, and hadn't found her. There were all sorts of things that could befall the young princess out there, and nearly all of them would completely ruin her plans. But there was no easy way of finding her, especially in a forest this size…

Suddenly, she heard voices, and ducked out of sight behind a large rock. She couldn't make out exactly what they were saying…but one of them was familiar. In fact…

She chanced a glance out from behind the rock, and her suspicions were confirmed. Rapunzel was standing almost a hundred feet away from her. Her lips spread in a smile; just like the heavens had delivered the flower to her, so too was Rapunzel right there, for her to take.

However, she wasn't alone. Standing next to her was a young man, with brown hair and a small goatee. He had some good looks to him…and that could be a problem, if she needed to get Rapunzel away from him. Moving quietly, she crept closer, hoping to hear what they were saying.

"…you think you can find your way back from here?" said the young man.

"I'm not sure," Rapunzel replied. "I've always had Maximus before…"

The young man scratched his head. "Well, I guess I can take you a little further. Just, if we run into any guards, we hide, okay?"

"But they can get me back."

"But they can also get me arrested. Sorry, I just don't like to take chances."

Rapunzel grinned. "Come on, you're the great Flynn Rider. You should be able to get away from a few guards."

"Hey, princess, in my experience, going unnoticed is ninety percent of not getting caught."

She sighed. "Fine. I'll hide if a guard comes."

"Thanks. It won't be much longer, anyway."

The pair moved off, and Mother Gothel took a moment to process what she had heard. That was Flynn Rider that Rapunzel was traveling with? _The _Flynn Rider? She had no idea how that could have come about—but that wasn't important. Right now, she needed to find an opportunity to catch Rapunzel after she and Rider parted ways, but before Rapunzel made it back to the guards or the kingdom. It would be difficult…but she thought she knew a way…

* * *

Flynn was going through an odd mixture of feelings at the moment, that he could best describe as simultaneously wanting to end his association with Rapunzel as quickly as possible and wanting to spend a lot more time with her. He still found the princess intriguing, but there was something about her that was stirring up feelings that were not appropriate for a master thief such as himself. No, this just wasn't right. The sooner he was done with this, the better.

And it wouldn't be too much longer. He knew the general area well enough to know that, if they wanted to reach the castle itself, it would probably take them until late afternoon. But he didn't need to get Rapunzel back to the castle, just to somewhere where she could find her way back. Although…he was surprised that she hadn't decided to part ways back at the tower. If she did indeed make frequent visits to it, she should be able to find her way back, horse or not. But…she did seem intrigued by him in a similar way that he was intrigued by her. Could that have played a role? Did she just want to get to know him better, or something? He wasn't sure how she was planning to; she had gotten a lot out of him the previous night, and there wasn't much more he could think of to tell her. Not that he'd necessarily be willing to talk, of course.

He pushed the thoughts out of his mind as his brain turned to the fact that it was early afternoon, and hence lunchtime. "You hungry?" he asked.

"A little."

"Well, let's get something to eat before I send you on your way. It's not much further back, and I'm sure you'll find some guards eventually or something."

"Oh…yeah."

"Anyways, I know a place. Not too far, serves some okay stuff."

"Really?"

"Yup."

"Where is it? What's it like?"

He chuckled. "Oh, you'll see. You'll smell it before you see it."

* * *

A short while later, they arrived, and Flynn gestured. "There it is, the Snuggly Duckling." It was a building with a crooked appearance, which made it look almost ominous. Faint noises emanated of arguing and boisterous merrymaking. "What do you think?"

"Uh…" Rapunzel looked like she didn't know how to react. "It's…charming, I guess?"

Flynn shrugged. "That's one word for it. I know it's no Gothel's tower, but…"

Pascal, who had woken up by then, looked up at Rapunzel. "Oh, sorry you missed the trip to the tower, Pascal," she said. "Don't worry; I'll take you some other time."

The chameleon frowned, but Rapunzel only smiled back. "So, should we go in?" she asked.

"Eh…why don't you stay out here?"

She frowned. "Why?"

"Because seeing you in there would probably cause a bit of a scene."

"A scene how?"

"Let's just say that maybe not everyone in there will be bending over in reverence."

She blinked and cast a nervous glance at the building. "Is…is it safe to go in?"

"Oh, it's fine, just so long as you don't attract too much attention."

She grinned. "That doesn't sound like something you'd be good at."

He blinked; he hadn't expected her to make a joke at his expense like that. There really was more to her than met the eye…

But he managed to bounce back. "Please, Princess, I've been doing this thing for years. I'm an expert at it. Just wait out here and I'll be back in a few." He strode off towards the doors to the Snuggly Duckling, and pushed them open.

The scene that greeted him was more or less your typical bar scene; big guys crowded around tables, talking loudly in tones that were usually either overly friendly or hostile. A few eyes turned to him as he walked in, but, to his relief, they didn't linger on him.

Then some more eyes went his way. And these ones remained pointed in his direction. _No need to panic,_ he thought. _No reason they'd think you're that guy._

More heads turned in his direction, and he unconsciously quickened his pace until he reached the counter. "Hey," he said nonchalantly to the bartender. "Lovely day, isn't it?"

The bartender peered at him. "What d'you want?"

"Oh, just curious about your lovely menu options." He looked at the hanging piece of wood that had the names of dishes messily painted on. "Let's see, what looks good today…?"

"Hey."

Flynn heard the voice from behind him, but didn't turn around; no need to assume that whoever it was was addressing him.

Until he spoke again. "Hey, you."

Flynn glanced over his shoulder to see one of the bar thugs glaring at him. One of the more menacing ones, if he was being honest. This fellow was bald, with a long black mustache and a face that looked like it was made to sneer. He also had a hook instead of one of his hands, which didn't help Flynn keep his calm. And, unfortunately, he was definitely talking to him. "Yes, can I help you?" said Flynn.

The thug gestured with his hook. "You're Flynn Rider, aren't ya?"

At those words, any thug that hadn't been looking at him already turned in his direction. "Who?" said Flynn innocently. "Never heard of him."

The hook-handed thug sneered. "Don't play dumb. You're Flynn Rider."

"You don't say?" Another thug walked up, this one with a particularly large nose and a small helmet with wings on it. "The Flynn Rider that the kingdom's offering a big reward for?"

"That's the one," said the hook-handed thug. "Someone wanna run to the guards while the rest of us hold 'im down?"

Flynn put up his hands. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, boys, calm down," he said. "I don't know what you're talking about, here. I'm just a guy looking to buy a little food for myself."

"You think we're stupid?" said the big-nosed thug. "We've seen the wanted posters. You're him, all right."

The thugs began to close in on Flynn. "Right then, Rider," said the hook-handed one. "Don't put up a fight, and this won't hurt…too much."

Flynn looked around, moving back. This wasn't good.

* * *

Rapunzel had barely seen Eugene go into the bar when she heard a rustling nearby. She whirled around to face it and began to back away, hoping she wouldn't have to deal with yet another bear…

But it was a person, one that she would never have guessed she'd run into. "Miss Gothel?"

Miss Gothel smiled at her in relief. "Oh, Rapunzel, thank goodness. I'd heard you'd been lost in the woods and I could barely contain myself with worry."

"Oh, I'm sorry to make you worry like that," said Rapunzel. "But it'll be all right. I've met someone who's agreed to take me back to the kingdom."

"You mean that abominable thief Flynn Rider?"

Rapunzel blinked. "How…"

"I saw you a while ago, but didn't dare approach you with _him_ around. Oh, Rapunzel, you know he's dangerous."

"Well…I don't know. He seems like an okay guy."

"Okay? Rapunzel, he's nothing but a criminal. The fact that you are still alive is nothing short of a miracle."

Rapunzel frowned. "He wouldn't hurt me."

"And how would you know that, dear? From spending a bit of time with him? Trust me, the man's track record speaks to his true character."

"But—"

"You haven't forgotten what I told you, have you? You cannot trust men so easily. They will take any chance they get to hurt you."

Rapunzel shook her head. "Miss Gothel, I—"

"Dear, I know what I'm saying. Why, he's not even taking you back to the kingdom!"

Rapunzel blinked. "He's…not?"

"No! You've been to this part of the woods before, haven't you? You know that this is not the most direct route back."

"There's…there's more than one way."

"Rapunzel, you simply mustn't be so trusting. I'd be willing to bet anything that he has a secret hideout in the area that he is waiting to lure you into."

"Secret hideout?"

"I know it sounds fantastic, but you can't put limits on someone like Flynn Rider." She held out a hand. "Come with me, and I'll keep you safe."

Rapunzel struggled with her thoughts. Eugene couldn't really be planning to do something like that…could he? She thought she had gotten to know him pretty well…but Miss Gothel's words resonated, that she had only spent a bit of time with a man that had a rather negative track record.

She looked down at the satchel in her hand. If she wanted to, she could go with Miss Gothel right now, and she wouldn't have to return the crown. She did like it, and she would be sorry to see it go…

The thought swirled around in her head for a brief moment before she recoiled from it in horror. What kind of person would she be if she went back on her deal like that? Even if Eugene wasn't sincere—and she wasn't ready to accept that that was the case—she could hardly live with herself if she treated him in such a way. "Thank you, Miss Gothel," she said, "but I don't think it's a bad thing to trust him. And I made a deal with him, and I intend to see it through."

"Don't be ridiculous," said Miss Gothel, her tone a little harsher than usual. "You don't owe him anything."

"He's saved my life."

"Then it was probably because he had other plans for you. Listen, now—"

But she was cut off by a sound coming from the Snuggly Duckling. It was a man screaming—and the voice was one that Rapunzel knew. "Eugene!" she said, and started towards the building.

"Rapunzel, don't go in there! I'm telling you, it's not safe with him!"

She turned back, and looked at the concerned face of Miss Gothel. "I'm sorry," she said, "but I have to do this."

And she ran towards the door and flung it open.

The sight that greeted her was not a welcome one. There was a struggle going on—Eugene versus everyone else in the bar. Well, except for one man, a short one with a white beard who looked too drunk to fully realize what was going on. But even without him, Eugene was in trouble. He was currently being held by a particularly large bar thug who was wearing a horned helmet. Another thug with a helmet that covered his entire head was holding his arms, and one with a big nose was holding his legs. "Come on, Rider," said a fourth thug, a bald one with a hook for a hand. "Don't make this difficult."

Rapunzel didn't know what to do…but when the helmeted thug twisted his arm in a way that looked painful, she instinctively cried out, "Eugene!"

Instantly, every head in the room turned toward her. Almost as instantly, every eye in the room widened.

"What the…?"

"Is that…is that the princess?"

"What's she doin' here?"

"Does she know Rider?"

"What'd she call him? Eugene?"

"Nah, she must be lookin' for someone else."

The hook-handed thug walked up to her. "Well, Your Highness," he said, his tone not exactly reverent but not disdainful, either, "I don't know what you're doin' here, but you don't need to worry." He gestured over his shoulder. "We've got this guy all tied up and ready for the guards."

"Release him. Please," she added.

The thug blinked. "Eh?"

"Put him down. He is escorting me back to the kingdom. I require his assistance."

Now nearly all of the thugs looked confused. "You don't need this guy," said the hook-handed one. "The kingdom's not too far away."

"He has seen me safely through much of the forest already. I agreed that if he were to do that, I would let him go, and I intend to keep that deal."

The hook-handed thug still looked confused…but he then adopted a hard look. "Well, that's nice and all, Princess, but this guy's got a lot of money attached to him. We can't just let that all go."

"So you're just concerned with the money?"

He shrugged. "It's a powerful motivator."

She looked around at the rest of the thugs, who all seemed to be in the same boat. "So this is what you want your lives to be?" she said. "Spending your time hanging out in bars, jumping on people that come in? Are you really satisfied with this?"

"Satisfied?" said the hook-handed thug. "What do you care if we're satisfied?"

"Everyone deserves to be satisfied in life," said Rapunzel. "Even you."

He held her gaze for a moment…and then, to her surprise, he softened his. "Nah, I ain't all that satisfied. But what can I do about it?"

"You're not?" said Rapunzel.

"No. I've…" He hesitated. "Well, I've always liked music. All the classical stuff. And for a long time, I wanted to play it myself." His gaze grew almost wistful. "I'd imagine myself on one of them grand stages, sittin' at a piano, performing for everyone to hear. But things didn't turn out that way."

"Who says they can't?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you mean?"

"You've still got a chance. Why not go out and become a pianist?"

He snorted. "C'mon, I've got a hook for a hand. No one'd believe that I can play."

"Well, can you?"

"Yeah."

She noticed a piano in the back. "Can you show me?"

He hesitated for a moment, but then walked over, sat down at the bench, and started playing. Rapunzel was taken aback—he really was good. Even some of the thugs around them stared in something close to awe.

A couple minutes later, the thug finished playing. A second of silence followed before Rapunzel began applauding—and nearly everyone else joined in. "That was really good!" said Rapunzel, walking up to him. "You still think you can't become a professional?"

He looked slightly more cheerful thanks to her reaction, but his hesitation remained. "There's also the fact that I've got a pretty rough history."

"Then start over. Change it."

He looked at her. "You really think I could do it?"

She smiled. "Of course." She looked at the other thugs. "And that goes for all of you, too. Do you guys have things that will make you satisfied?"

For a moment, no one said anything. Then, the big-nosed thug piped up. "Well…" Rapunzel looked at him, and he went red and looked away. "No, forget it, it's nothing."

"No, it's not," she said. "What is it?"

He sighed. "Well, I'd really like to meet someone. You know, that special someone. Someone to spend time with, get to love, even." His face became downcast. "Not that it's gonna happen…I'm not exactly a great prize."

She walked over to him. "Says who? I'm sure that there's someone out there who'd be delighted to be your special someone."

"Really?"

"Absolutely. If you show them how nice you can be, I know they'll go for you."

Another thug spoke up. "Yeah, c'mon, we all know what a big sap you are."

The other thugs laughed—but it was a good kind of laugh, and Rapunzel could sense the support for their comrade behind it.

And with that, the ice was broken. Other thugs began to express their desires, no matter what they were.

"Yeah, I get tired of all this sometimes. I'd like to make flower arrangements; I've always liked how they look."

"I'd like to be a baker. I've made some stuff before, and people have told me they're really good."

"I have done some knitting from time to time. I once made a scarf for this one kid who was freezing his butt off. I think he really liked it."

Soon, everyone was smiling and talking, encouraging each other or giving advice. Rapunzel found that her counsel was highly sought after, and a lot of thugs came away from a brief talk with her with wide smiles on their faces. Soon, the bar had become a site of celebration and hope, the thugs raising their glasses and yelling out in support of each other. The short bearded one from before was right in his element, skipping around and calling out things like "Whoo-hoo!" at semi-regular intervals.

Eventually, she was able to make her way over to Eugene, who had become more of an afterthought for the thugs. "Whew! Glad we got out of that," she said.

"Uh, yeah, thanks," he said.

The hook-handed thug came up to them. "Consider yourself lucky, Rider," he said.

"Oh, I do," said Eugene hastily, taking a small step back.

The big-nosed thug sidled up to him. "I thought you were saying you weren't Flynn Rider?"

"Oh, um, no, I'm still not," said Eugene, getting more flustered. "But, if I was…I mean, even though I'm not…"

Rapunzel couldn't help but laugh at the sight of him quailing before two men who had just revealed their deepest desires, and who were really quite nice. "Hey, thanks for the sympathy," he said.

"Sorry," she said.

Miss Gothel couldn't be right. She undoubtedly meant well, but she just hadn't had the right kinds of experiences. If she met Eugene, or any of these men, and really got to know them, she'd see how much good people, even men, were capable of.


	13. Capture

Mother Gothel had miscalculated. Something had happened during their time together that had brought Rapunzel closer to Rider than she would have liked. Simply trying to convince her might not work. Rapunzel was too trusting for her own good…which wasn't entirely a bad thing, as Mother Gothel would need it for any of her plans to work. But it was getting in the way at the moment, and the sorceress needed a way to get around it. She did have her inside man in the castle, but the ideal situation would be to get Rapunzel before she made it back there, so he might not have a role to play. At least, not at the moment.

A few minutes after she had walked away from the Snuggly Duckling (which was really a terrible name for that place), she heard the unmistakable sound of someone moving through the forest. Quickly, she ducked behind a nearby tree and watched. Depending on who it was, she might be able to use them…

A large man emerged, closely followed by another. They were clearly related, as they were nearly identical in stature, had the same orange hair, and their scowling faces bore strong resemblances to each other. The only difference was that one had an eye patch and the other didn't.

Mother Gothel knew who they were, of course. Flynn Rider hadn't had such distinctive features, so she hadn't recognized him at first, but these were clearly the infamous Stabbington brothers.

The one without the patch spoke. "This isn't right, either. We're not going the right way, I tell you."

The one with the patch grunted, and his brother continued. "We gotta find Rider. He can't have gone too far just yet." His expression darkened. "And when we do find him…" His fingers closed around an imaginary neck.

Mother Gothel nodded from behind her hiding place, an idea forming in her mind. These two could serve her well. Ruthless criminals whose mere appearances would intimidate someone like Rapunzel…And they had been betrayed by Rider. Cheated out of their plunder, they would not only be looking for revenge, but for ways to regain what had been taken from them…

She nodded. Yes, that could work. That could certainly work.

She stepped out from behind the tree. "Good afternoon, gentlemen."

* * *

Rapunzel really was something. She had turned the entire population of the Snuggly Duckling from a hostile force trying to turn Flynn in into a crowd of optimistic, cheerful pals in just a couple of minutes. Flynn had to admit, he'd never met someone like that. In a way, it really was a shame that they weren't going to see each other again after this. But life was what it was, and though it may be true that the members of this crowd could easily reform themselves, he had a pretty outstanding criminal record, and that wasn't going away any time soon.

They ended up staying in the bar for a while, getting Flynn and Rapunzel the lunch that he had originally intended to obtain. He couldn't help but grin as he heard their banter.

"No, this duck isn't cooked right. We need to get her a different one."

"Attila, it's fine. If you keep going on like this, she's going to go hungry."

"But she's the princess. She should get the best this place has to offer."

"And this is the best they can do. No offense, Dmitri."

"Get the princess something to drink, too!"

"Drink? We don't want to give her alcohol!"

"Why not? She's old enough."

"But she has to be in her best state of mind for her trip back. Get her some juice or something."

"Juice? You idiot, we're not trying to insult her."

"How is giving her juice insulting her? This place has some good juice."

"Says you. I could make better grape juice than Dmitri."

"Well, grape juice, sure, but have you tried the apple? He's got that down."

Flynn leaned over to Rapunzel, grinning. "Is it always like this up at the castle? People stumbling over each other trying to serve you?"

"Not exactly." She giggled. "It's cute, though."

"Cute" wasn't exactly the word Flynn would have used—in fact, he thought he'd almost rather walk up to Captain Marcus and poke him with a stick than call any of these men cute—but he admitted he could sort of see where she was coming from.

A fly buzzed right next to his face, and a long tongue shot out and grabbed it. "Bull's eye," said Flynn, grinning at Pascal, who now had half a fly hanging out of his mouth.

Rapunzel turned away. "I hate it when he does that…"

Flynn shrugged. "Hey, you eat your way, and he'll eat his way. Reminds me of me, actually."

"Yes, I've noticed that neither of you are the neatest eaters."

Thief and chameleon exchanged brief smiles before the latter caught sight of another succulent morsel, and moved into position.

Eventually, they got their food, and Rapunzel, though she clearly enjoyed spending time with the bar thugs, announced that they had to leave, but that she would make sure to visit them sometime. After receiving (and giving) a slew of goodbyes and well-wishes, she left the bar, Flynn just in front of her and Pascal back on her shoulder. "That was really nice," she said.

Flynn nodded. "You continue to impress me, Princess."

"I didn't really do anything. They just needed a bit of encouragement, and I gave it to them."

"Hey, that's still something. Don't sell yourself short, now."

She smiled at him. "You know…you could think about that, too."

"About what?"

"Finding what really makes you satisfied. I don't think it's stealing."

He chuckled dryly. "Yeah, unfortunately, that advice doesn't work as well for a highly wanted thief."

"You could still change your ways. I'm sure that I could convince my parents and Marcus to give you a chance, or at the very least ease up on your sentence."

"Well, that's nice of you…but I just don't think it's the path for me."

Her face fell. "Are you sure? Because I think—"

He cut her off. "I'm sure, Rapunzel. I chose my path a long time ago, and I'm going to stick to it."

She fell silent, and he felt a small sensation of guilt settle over him. Did he have to shut her down like that?

_Yes, I did,_ he thought. _She and I—I mean, she can imagine otherwise, but I'm not going to be leaving the path I'm on. We're going to part ways, I'm going to take back the crown, and I'm going to do what I planned to do in the first place._

He kept that thought firmly in mind as they continued on, doing his best to ignore the other thoughts that tried to spring up and catch him off guard. As a result, they remained mostly silent for about a half hour, when Rapunzel stopped. "I know this place," she said.

Flynn also came to a halt. "Like, you know it well enough to get back?"

She nodded. "Yes."

He sighed. So, this was it, then. "All right. Then I guess my work is done."

"Yes. Thank you for all of your help, Eugene."

"Sure. And thank you, too."

She blinked. "For what?"

"You saved my neck a couple of times. Or have you forgotten? You used your hair to save us on the cliff, and just now, I would have been handed over to the guards if you hadn't stepped in." He smiled. "I guess I'll leave you with the fact that you're a really good person, and I know you'll do well in whatever it is you end up doing."

She looked down. "Thank you."

Oh, heck. She wasn't crying again, was she? Had their relationship really come to this, that their parting ways was a tearjerking moment?

Actually…that wasn't such a ridiculous idea. They had been through a lot in just a little over a day. Each had saved the other's life on at least one occasion, they had gotten to know each other rather extensively…he could even feel himself getting a little choked up.

He blinked. No, no, that wasn't happening. They were going to walk away, in opposite directions, and it would be an uneventful goodbye. He sniffed, then, to conceal the fact that it might have any emotion behind it, spat on the ground.

Rapunzel looked up at him, eyebrow raised. "Charming."

He shrugged. "It's how I roll. So, uh…"

He looked down at the satchel in her hand, and she followed his gaze. "Oh, yes." She started forward. "Here."

Flynn reached out to take it. Then, Rapunzel tripped over a root, and went sprawling…right into his arms. Just like back at the tower, they looked at each other, and Flynn could feel…something there.

Something that couldn't last. Moving quickly, he steadied her and took his hands off of her. "You okay?"

"Y-yeah."

That darn awkward silence came back, but was thankfully broken after Rapunzel held the satchel out to him again. "Thanks," he said, taking it. "Well…time for me to be off." He flashed a smile at her. "You be well, now."

And, before he could have any second thoughts, he strode off, leaving her behind. It was indeed somewhat painful—which he tried to view as annoying. In a couple weeks, he'd be far away, with her and the entire kingdom of Corona a distant memory. He'd be living the life he'd always dreamed of…that is, until now.

He groaned and ran a hand through his hair. What had happened to him?

A small voice in the back of his head presented him with an answer, which he immediately rejected. That was absurd; it couldn't have happened. She had merely been an interesting traveling companion, and while he might miss her for a little while, her absence would soon become a blessing, freeing him to do as he pleased.

Except…he wasn't sure what he pleased was anymore.

Again, the small voice made its suggestion, and again he rejected it as an impossibility. That thought was far too fanciful for Corona's most wanted thief.

He nodded. Yeah, that was right. He was Flynn Rider, the most wanted thief in the kingdom. He was quick, silent, talented, and not too bad-looking, either. That was who he was. That, and nothing else.

That.

That.

That…

* * *

Rapunzel didn't watch as he walked away, didn't turn for a final glimpse of him, didn't look at the man who had become a big part of her life walk right out of it. She didn't think she'd be able to keep herself together.

She didn't understand why this was such a big deal; they had both known that their partnership would only last for a little while—and yet she had made attempts to dissuade him, hadn't she?

On her shoulder, Pascal looked at sympathetically and made a small consoling sound. "Thanks, Pascal," she said. "I'm not sure why…" She trailed off, and the chameleon put a small scaled hand on her cheek. Smiling, she brought her hand up to him and stroked him lightly. "I guess we'd better get back."

He nodded, and she began to walk, slowly, back towards the kingdom.

But just a few moments after, she heard the faint but unmistakable sound of hooves. "Oh! That must be the guards!" she said.

Pascal nodded, perking up. "Well, let's settle everyone's worries," said Rapunzel, and headed in the direction of the noise. She could find her way back without the guards, but it would take her a lot less time on horseback, and she knew that whichever guard it was would be happy to see her. Maybe it would even be Marcus.

The hooves grew louder, and she quickened her pace. "Hello?" she called. "I'm out here!"

The sound was right near her now. She reached a tree and rounded it. "Sorry to worry you, but—"

She stopped, the sight before her not what she expected at all. Instead of a guard on horseback, there were two men, both on foot. And neither looked like guards; they not only weren't wearing the uniform, but they had a much more sinister air than any guard she had ever seen. Both were big, hulking men, with short orange hair and noticeable scars on their faces. One of them wore an eyepatch, and had his hand up to his mouth. With a jolt, Rapunzel realized that he had been making the noise of hooves. Before she could do much to react to this, the other man, the one without the eyepatch, stepped forward. "Well, good afternoon, Princess," he said.

Rapunzel took a step back. "Who are you?"

"Just a couple of guys looking to make a living," he said. "Word on the street is that you're lost out here."

She shook her head. "I'm not lost. I know where I'm going."

"You sure? It's a big forest."

"Yes, I'm sure." She continued to back away, not liking the look of these men at all.

Unfortunately, they both advanced on her, not allowing her to reduce the distance between them. "Ah, don't be so afraid, Princess. There's nothin' to worry about. All this is gonna be real easy, if you just cooperate nicely."

Now she was really getting afraid. What was "all this?" What did these men want with her? "I don't know who you are," she said, fighting to keep her voice steady, "but if you're planning anything that goes against the kingdom, you'll be sorry."

The man nearest to her, the one without the eyepatch, chuckled. "Somehow I don't think we will. I actually think that the kingdom will give us a lot to have its precious princess back safe and sound." His grin grew more malicious. "It'd be terrible if anything was to happen to her."

That was all Rapunzel needed. Without another thought, she turned and ran. But getting away from someone was especially difficult with hair as long as hers. She had only been running for a few seconds when she was forced to stop, her hair caught on the man's boot. "Ah!" she yelled as she fell down. She tried to scramble to her feet, but the man kept her down by her hair. "Let me go!"

"We'd be happy to," he said, drawing closer. "Just as soon as we get the kingdom's treasure and a free ride to wherever we want."

Rapunzel glared at him. "My parents will never give in to your demands."

"Really? I have a feeling they will."

He had gotten within arm's reach of her, and he brought his boot off her hair just long enough to reach down and grab her arm. Unfortunately for him, her other arm was free, and she swung it at him, her fist colliding with his cheek. "Ah!" he said, taking a step back.

Rapunzel tried to use the opportunity to get away, but again, her hair was her undoing, and she found herself trapped once more. "You're gonna wish you hadn't done that, Princess," said the man, his eyes now burning with anger.

"You wouldn't hurt me," she said.

"Wouldn't we?" He looked at his partner. "I actually think it might be a good way to show we're serious. Nothin' too much, just a bit of roughing up."

His partner nodded, and the two advanced on the princess. "No…get away! Get away!"

But they were not to be deterred. Taking a breath, she braced herself.

* * *

Flynn found himself drifting off course, and shook his head. He knew his mind wasn't completely focused, but what did that have to do with getting physically sidetracked? He knew where he was going…didn't he?

Or did he? Some part of him seemed to want to go a different way—back the way he came. "Cut that out," he said to himself. "Going back there is just gonna get you captured."

_But even if you are captured, couldn't Rapunzel get you some leniency?_ asked that little voice in his mind.

"That's ridiculous!" he said. "Captured is captured. I'm a man who likes his freedom. I'm not going to give it up just…just for her."

He scowled, hating the war with himself. This had never happened before…but, then again, he had never had spent a day and a half like he just had before, either. He returned his focus to his progress, though his scowl remained. Well, it would go away eventually.

Then, he heard it. A yell, or a scream. He froze. That sounded…it sounded like Rapunzel. He shook his head. No, he was imagining things. His mind was still on her, and it was conjuring up things to try to get him to go back. Though it had sounded like she was in trouble…

Then, he heard another yell, this one words. He couldn't make it out exactly, but…it sounded like someone was saying "let me go."

No, not "someone." Rapunzel.

After a second of indecision, he sighed. "Dang it," he said, and, turning, he sprinted back to the site where they had parted ways. As he drew nearer, he strained his ears for any further sound that might give him a hint as to where Rapunzel was. How was she in trouble already? Had there been someone watching them, waiting for him to leave so they could move in on the princess? He shuddered at the thought.

He reached the spot where he had left her and looked around. Where had her voice come from…?

Then, another sound reached his ears, which sounded like someone else letting out a startled exclamation. The voice was male, so it wasn't Rapunzel…but if she was being threatened by someone, that could be him. Moving quickly but quietly, he made his way in the direction of the voice. A few seconds later, he heard another voice, coming from around a nearby tree. "No…get away! Get away!"

That was definitely Rapunzel. He peered around the tree…and his heart leapt into his mouth. Holding her down by the hair, advancing on her, were none other than the Stabbington brothers. Questions began to flood his mind: how had they escaped the guards? Had they been following him? Had _he_ led them to the princess?

Then he caught sight of Rapunzel's terrified expression, and put those thoughts aside. Right now, none of that mattered. What did matter was that Rapunzel was in danger. He had to save her…but he wasn't sure how. In a fistfight with his former partners, he had no doubt that they would come out on top—his specialty was speed, not power. He looked around for some sort of inspiration—and his eyes alighted on a vine dangling from the tree next to him.

An idea came to his mind. It was crazy, and probably very dangerous…but it might work. He dropped the satchel on the ground, and, taking care not to draw attention to himself, he scrambled up the tree and grabbed the vine. He prepared to push off, and then, right before he did, he yelled, "Howdy, boys!"

As the Stabbington brothers turned in his direction, he pushed off from the tree. Surprise at his appearance did its work, and they were unable to react before Flynn planted his boot in One-Eye's face. With a grunt, he fell back, as Two-Eye looked on with an incredulous expression. "Wha…Rider?"

Flynn smiled at him. "Long time, no see."

"Eugene!" said Rapunzel, looking up at him.

As Flynn prepared to swing around for another pass at them, he felt a thrill—similar to the one he had gotten when carrying out his heists, but different. Now _this_ was what Flynnigan Rider had been all about. Swinging in at the last moment, saving people when they needed him most…it was a whole new kind of exciting. Why had he given up on that part? He had shunned the life of a hero in favor of the life of a villain. But…maybe Rapunzel was right. Maybe it wasn't too late to make the switch.

Kicking off from another tree, he rocketed back towards the brothers. He saw them snarl at him, reaching up to try to grab him—but at the last minute, he swung his body up, out of their reach. As their fingers closed on empty space, he swung back down and hit Two-Eye in the back of the head with his feet.

"Ah!" said Two-Eye, stumbling. Rubbing the back of his head, he glared up at Rider, then turned to his brother. "Get up there and cut that vine."

One-Eye nodded, and made his way towards the tree that Flynn's vine was hanging off of, drawing a knife as he did so. Flynn bit his lip—that might prove to be a complication.

But then, something happened that none of the three men expected. Freeing herself from the brothers, Rapunzel got up and tackled One-Eye, bringing him to the ground. "Don't touch him!" she said.

Two-Eye's face became livid, and he grabbed the princess and pulled her up. "Get off my brother, you little—"

"Rapunzel!" said Flynn, and swung back towards the scene, aiming for Two-Eye. But the big thief grinned and moved out of the way, so that Flynn passed by harmlessly. As Flynn watched, he turned his attention back to Rapunzel, and raised a fist.

Flynn had never considered himself too much of a risk-taker. Sure, stealing everything that he had was risky, but he made sure to plan things out before then, so that everything would go successfully, or, if it didn't, he could get away easily enough. So doing something that was almost certain to end up badly for him was a rather foreign concept to the infamous thief. Yet he didn't hesitate for an instant before leaping off the vine and slamming into Two-Eye, knocking him down. "Rapunzel, get out of here!" he shouted, as Two-Eye worked to right himself.

"But, Eugene…"

"I'll be fine, just go already!"

Unfortunately, his attention had been diverted from Two-Eye for a second too long. Grabbing him by the collar, the orange-haired criminal hoisted Flynn up. "Oh, you're not gonna be fine, pretty boy," he said. "You're gonna be anything but fine when we're through with you!"

Flynn lashed out with his foot, catching the larger thief in the stomach, but even though the latter grunted, he kept his grip firm. "Let him go!" said Rapunzel.

Suddenly, One-Eye perked his head up. Quickly, he closed the distance between him and his brother and tapped him on the shoulder. "What?" said Two-Eye…and then perked his head up, too. "Guards," he said.

Flynn listened. Yes, that definitely was the sound of hooves drawing nearer. For the first time in his life, the idea that the guards were coming gave him a sense of relief. Now Rapunzel would be safe for sure.

Two-Eye looked back at Flynn. "That's fine," he said. "I can work with that."

And he drove his fist into Flynn's stomach. Flynn's eyes widened as the wind was knocked out of him, and he gasped for air as Two-Eye dropped him to the ground. "Say hi to the guards for us, Rider," said Two-Eye. Then, he and his brother were running, putting as much distance between them and the approaching guards as possible.

Flynn groaned lightly. Oh yeah, the guards wanted him, too…he should get out of there…

But he couldn't. Two-Eye's blow had rendered him temporarily helpless, and by the time he recovered, the guards would be on top of him.

He forced himself to look up in the direction of the sounds of hooves, which were getting closer. Well, this hadn't gone exactly as he had planned…

But at least Rapunzel was safe.

* * *

Marcus was leading a small patrol of three other men when he heard the scream, which stopped him dead in his tracks. "Was that…?" he said.

One of his companions, a young guard named Claudius, nodded. "It sounded like the princess, sir!"

"And it sounds like she's in trouble." Marcus grabbed Faustus's reins. "Which direction did it come from?"

The other guards looked around. "It was a bit of a distance away, Captain…" said another one of them.

"Distance or not, we have to get there," said Marcus. "We cannot stand by while Rapunzel is in danger."

Claudius pointed. "I think it came from somewhere over there, sir."

"Sounds right to me," said the captain. "Let's go!"

The four of them raced through the woods, ears strained for any other noises that might lead them to Rapunzel. Unfortunately, about a minute passed without them hearing anything, and Marcus held up a hand. "Slow down; our horses might be drowning out any other noises."

The riders slowed their horses to a trot, and listened intently. "I hear something that sounds like a scuffle, sir," said Claudius.

"Where? Wait, no, I hear it, too." Marcus looked around. "This way!"

They took off again, the noises getting louder. Marcus clenched his teeth—if anything had happened to Rapunzel, there was no way he could face anyone back up at the castle again…

But he could still hear her voice…and it was right up ahead. Spurring Faustus on for an extra burst of speed, he emerged onto the scene, quickly analyzing it.

It took a moment, though. Rapunzel was right there, in front of him, bending over someone who was looking right at him. Marcus caught his breath as he recognized the face—it was Flynn Rider.

A crashing further ahead got his attention, and he looked up to see none other than the Stabbington brothers escaping further into the woods. But also further ahead, off to the side, was another small patrol, this one headed by William.

Marcus's instincts as captain took over. "Don't let them get away!" he called to William, pointing at the Stabbingtons. "Use your bows if you have to!"

William gave a curt nod, and then he and his patrol took off after the fleeing brothers.

Marcus turned his attention back to the figures right in front of him. Rapunzel actually looked like she was concerned for Rider—but his mind came up with an explanation. It was likely that Rider had charmed her somehow, probably trying to get her to do something for him, and she had fallen for it. Tough as Rapunzel was, she was also very compassionate, and it wasn't difficult to gain her trust. Rider had probably pitched some spiel to her that had softened her attitude towards him, and now she was concerned for his well-being. But Rider's charms wouldn't work on him. Marcus had waited too long for this moment to let up.

First, though, he had to make sure Rapunzel was okay. Dismounting his horse, he ran over to her. "Rapunzel, are you all right?"

She stood up. "Marcus!" She hugged him. "I'm so glad to see you."

"I'm glad to see you, too," he said. "We've been worried sick, your parents especially."

"I know; I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. You're safe now, and we'll get you back to the castle. Everything will be fine."

He smiled at her before turning to Rider, and his demeanor changed entirely. "Well, Flynn Rider, we meet again. Except these circumstances are much more different than the last ones."

Rider returned his gaze—though, strangely enough, without any of the usual cockiness or defiance that he usually displayed. Marcus supposed that he knew that he was defeated. "Nothing to say, hm?" he said. "Well, that's all right. I've got something to say to you."

"Marcus…" started Rapunzel.

"Hold on a moment." He didn't want his next words to be interrupted; they signified a victory for him that he had only dreamed of up until now. "Flynn Rider, you are under arrest." Oh, it felt so good to say that.

Two of his accompanying guards walked over to Rider, a small piece of rope with them. They forced him to his feet and bound his hands behind his back. "Claudius, he can ride with you," said Marcus. "Henry, Saxtus, ride behind them and keep an eye on him. Make sure he doesn't try anything."

The guards nodded, and set about carrying out his orders. "Hey, Captain," said Saxtus. "Look at this."

He walked over to the base of a nearby tree and lifted something up. "Is this the satchel that…"

"Yes, it is," said Marcus, his excitement growing. "Is it there?"

Saxtus reached in, and pulled out the crown that Rider had stolen four days ago. Marcus's smile broadened. "We did it," he said. "Good eyes, Saxtus."

Saxtus put the crown back in the satchel, walked back over to Marcus, and handed it to him before going about making sure Rider was secured. After Marcus had smiled down at it for a moment, he looked back up at Rapunzel. "You can ride with me, Rapunzel."

"Okay, but…Marcus, I think you've got the wrong idea about Eu—about Flynn."

"We can talk about that later. Right now, my first concern is just to get you and him back." He hesitated. "Er, obviously you're more important, though."

Rapunzel gave him a look that he wasn't fond of. "You will talk with me about him before you do anything with him, right?"

He sighed. "If you insist."

"I do."

"Then I will. But come on, I don't want to keep your parents waiting any longer."

She blinked. "Oh, right."

The two of them swung themselves up onto Faustus, and together, the group rode back to the castle. Marcus's mood was very good—he had managed to find and bring back Rapunzel, Rider _and_ the stolen crown—and possibly even the Stabbington brothers—at the same time. It seemed as though all of his problems were just determined to resolve themselves. There was the matter of whatever Rapunzel felt about Rider…but after a talk with him and her parents, she would come to realize that whatever it was had been a manipulative trick of his.

He drew himself up. His father would be proud. He knew it.


	14. Sentence

Things were just not going well. Not once, but twice had Mother Gothel's plans to capture Rapunzel been thwarted. She had been _seconds_ away from stepping in and rescuing her from the Stabbington brothers when that infinitely pesky Flynn Rider had come in and save her. What was his deal? Why had he saved her when he had his treasure back? Did he actually care about her?

Well, at least he would get what was coming to him. But now that Rapunzel was back at the castle, there would be other players to deal with, as well…

But she had other players, too. As she made her way back to her tower, she realized that the time had come to call on her inside man within the castle. This time, if she used him right—and he was much more capable than those blundering Stabbington brothers—Rapunzel's power would be hers. Permanently.

The plan would have to be carefully laid, though, and they would both have to move with the utmost caution to make sure nothing went wrong. But they could do it. They could get around the doting king and queen, defeat the captain who wasn't as competent as he'd like to think, and finish off the thief who had interfered with her designs for the last time.

Now in her tower, she took out a quill, ink, and a piece of paper. After another moment of thought, she began to write.

* * *

Marcus had to admit, he was a little taken aback by the events of the previous half hour or so. As soon as he and Rapunzel had arrived at the castle, her parents had rushed over to her with many hugs and exclamations of relief. Everyone else that had been present had also been delighted to see her, in particular the stable boys, most of which had gotten to know her well due to her frequent visits to Maximus.

That hadn't been surprising. What had been was the princess's recounting of what had happened to her. After giving the orders to lock Rider up, Marcus had accompanied the royal family to the throne room, where Rapunzel began her story.

The first part was straightforward enough, albeit a little worry-inducing. When Rapunzel told them how she had been attacked by a bear, Marcus saw the king looking like he was fighting back the urge to issue an order to hunt down all the bears in the area. (Marcus was just glad that Rapunzel had managed to get away, and felt further justified in his decision to give Maximus to Rapunzel; the horse had saved her life.)

Then had come the part in Rapunzel's story when she got lost and was wandering aimlessly…until she ran into Rider. She had told them how she had managed to get the satchel containing the crown, and how she had used it to persuade him to lead her back to the kingdom.

It was at this point that Marcus's first question had come to mind: why hadn't Rider taken back the crown by force before Rapunzel threatened to break it? It would have been easy enough, surely. But, as he subsequently decided, Rider must have already been planning something to get in the princess's good graces, and forcing the crown from her would not have helped there.

Yet as her story continued, it made less sense to the captain. For instance, why would Rider have saved her from eating the nightshade berry? Sure, he wouldn't have been able to carry out his good graces plan, but how much better could that be than getting the crown back with no evidence to connect him to what had happened to Rapunzel? He'd be miles away before she was discovered…

Marcus had repressed a shudder at the thought. Rapunzel dead was at the top of his list of unpleasant mental images.

And she had continued further, telling her listeners about her second encounter with the bear, and how she and Rider had ended up running off a cliff, but managed to get back up when she used her hair to snag a nearby tree. (Here was the first time that Marcus sensed that she was deliberately leaving something out, yet he couldn't guess what.) And then…and then she'd claimed that, after their near-death experience, they had bonded through conversation that night. It was then that Marcus began to wonder just how much Rider had manipulated the princess, and he forced back a scowl. If that thief thought he could get away with things like that, he had another thing coming. He just hoped that the king and queen weren't buying it, too. They both wore expressions of surprise, and he could tell that they, as well, were doing their best to process this information.

Rapunzel had glossed over most of the events that had happened earlier that day, between the time when she had woken up and when Marcus had found her—though she did mention how they had had a very nice visit at the Snuggly Duckling with the people there (at first, Marcus had wondered if she was being sarcastic, but her demeanor had seemed oddly genuine, considering the place had a reputation that would suggest otherwise). Then, her tone had become more earnest and serious, as she told them that, after the two had parted ways (which she had described with an oddly solemn countenance), she had been attacked by the Stabbington brothers, and how Rider had come to her rescue, keeping them occupied until the guards had come.

Ever since that, Marcus had remained silent, processing the information. A few minutes after Rapunzel's story was over, and after she and her parents had exchanged more words of gratitude that she was back safely, the king asked if they could have a word with Marcus. She looked mildly concerned, and asked if they were going to talk about Rider. "We are," he responded, "and we will take everything you have said into consideration."

"And you'll tell me what you end up deciding?"

He nodded, and she, seemingly satisfied, left the room.

For a moment, no one spoke. Then, Marcus looked up. "This is, admittedly, somewhat surprising," he said, "but we have to be cautious, and not jump to conclusions."

"You mean in terms of believing Rider?" said the king.

Marcus nodded. "I don't trust him. A lot of this sounds like a ploy to get himself in the kingdom's good graces."

"If he was trying to do that," said the queen, "then why did he save Rapunzel from those other thieves? I think we owe him for that, at least."

"Maybe, maybe not," said Marcus. "Perhaps he was hoping that he had established a rapport with Rapunzel, and that if she was harmed by the Stabbingtons, it wouldn't end up making a difference." He hesitated. "To be honest, I would take Rapunzel's testimonies with a grain of salt. Rider has most likely manipulated her into believing in his good side."

The queen raised an eyebrow. "Are you suggesting he doesn't have one?"

"Not that he doesn't have one, but that it's buried pretty deep. I've seen him and the things that he's done, and it's hard to imagine that he'd be able to put that aside so easily."

"Hm," said the queen. "Perhaps that is one of the problems here? I apologize if this comes off in a bad way, but could your bias against him be influencing your opinion?"

Marcus's eyes narrowed for a brief moment. "I'm…I'm being cautious, Your Majesty. We can't trust Rider; he's proven himself to be a hardened criminal."

"What has he done aside from committing theft?"

"Isn't that a lot already? But to answer your question, he's a backstabber, too. The night that he stole the crown, he deserted his companions and left them to be arrested. Who's to say he wasn't planning on doing something similar with Rapunzel?"

The queen fell silent, but the king spoke up. "Perhaps we might gain something from speaking to Rider himself."

Marcus blinked. "You mean, get him to say what happened, and see what he says?"

"Yes, along those lines."

The captain thought for a moment, then nodded. "All right, I'll have my men get him."

* * *

A few minutes later, Flynn Rider was standing in front of them, two guards flanking him, looking rather out of place—almost sheepish, especially when he faced the king and queen themselves.

The king spoke. "Flynn Rider," he said, "you've been causing trouble for this kingdom for a long time." He paused briefly. "But we are not here to condemn you, not yet."

"We would like to hear your story of what happened," said the queen. "Rapunzel has told us of how you and she made your way through the forest, but we thought a second perspective might be helpful."

Rider looked a little taken aback, but didn't protest. "Uh, okay," he said. "Well, I'd hung up the satchel with the crown in it 'cause I needed to…er, well, that's not important. But when I came back…"

He launched into his story which, to Marcus's surprise, matched up quite well with what Rapunzel had told them. And, as he looked over the thief's face during his recounting of the story, he was struck by how little deception he saw in it. Sure, Rider was an accomplished thief and liar, but…something about his demeanor seemed…earnest.

Marcus narrowed his eyes. It wasn't a word he liked to associate with the thief.

Rider continued with his story, until he got to the part when the bear chased them off the cliff, and Marcus got an idea. "Ah, this part," he said. "I'm interested to hear how you used your skills to save both yourself and the princess."

Rider, as well as the king and queen, looked over at him with questioning glances. "Huh?" said Rider.

"She told us that it was you that saved her. That what happened?"

Rider glanced down for a moment, and Marcus took the opportunity to flash a quick wink at the king and queen. He didn't doubt Rapunzel's story of her hair having saved them, but if Rider said that it was him who saved them, it would prove that he was lying to them, at least in part.

But what happened next threw off the young captain quite a bit. Rider smiled—again, with no trace of confidence or self-gain—and said, "Nice of her. But I can't take the credit for that—at least, not all of it. I might've done something, but she was the one who got us out of there. She used her hair to catch another nearby tree and we used it to get back on solid ground."

Marcus stood in silence. Rider hadn't lied…he had a great opportunity to take credit for saving Rapunzel—again—and he hadn't taken it. He had mentioned the saving her from the nightshade berry; had he thought that was enough? Or maybe he had suspected that Marcus was tricking him, and didn't want to risk getting caught lying…

But the captain had to return his focus to the present moment, as the queen had prompted Rider to continue. He did so, telling them how he and Rapunzel had had a conversation that night (but he didn't suggest as much about it as Rapunzel had), how they had made a couple of stops, first at Gothel's tower, and then at the Snuggly Duckling—where Rapunzel had saved him from the rambunctious thugs—and then, how they had parted ways. Here, Rider, like Rapunzel had done, adopted a more solemn demeanor. But it only lasted for a moment before he told them how he had heard Rapunzel screaming, had gone back and fought off the Stabbington brothers until the guards had arrived. "Why did you go back for her?" said the king.

Rider hesitated, clearly in thought. "I, uh, I just didn't want her to get hurt."

"Why not?" asked Marcus.

He shrugged. "I'd gotten to know her a bit. It didn't seem right."

The four of them remained in silence for a moment. Then, the queen broke it. "Well, thank you for all that you have done for Rapunzel."

Rider blinked. "Uh…yeah, sure."

Marcus gestured to the guards that had brought him in, and Rider was escorted out. "I'd say that cast a favorable light on him," said the queen.

Marcus fought back a wince; that was what he had been hoping she would not say. "Not necessarily," he argued. "Just because he told the same story as Rapunzel doesn't mean that he didn't suspect us of trying to catch him lying, and decided it was in his best interests not to do so."

"But why did he refute the claim that he saved them from the cliff?" said the king.

"My guess is that he knew we were testing him," said Marcus.

The queen looked thoughtful. "I don't think we have enough evidence to condemn him…"

"We're—" Marcus began hotly. Then, he caught himself and spoke in a more level tone. "Your Majesty, we're not trying him based on what he's done in the past couple of days. We're trying him based on what he's done in the past few years, and that outweighs his past actions."

The queen's eyes hardened. "Stealing a few things outweighs saving Rapunzel's life? You can't deny that he did that, Captain."

Marcus shrunk back a bit. "My…please forgive me, that is not what I meant. I meant that the years of Rider's misdeeds cannot be undone in just a couple of days."

"Can't they? It seems to me like he might have turned over a new leaf."

"I…perhaps, but I do not feel like there is sufficient evidence to that effect."

The king folded his arms. "That may be…but regardless, it seems to me as though, one way or another, Rider deserves a lightened sentence. No matter what his motives behind it, he did save Rapunzel's life, and we cannot let that go unnoticed."

The queen nodded, and Marcus thought. He knew that what the king was saying was true…even he had to admit that Rider was responsible for Rapunzel being back safe at the castle. "Yes, that is true," he said. "But now we must decide how much to lighten it."

"He can serve a few years in prison," said the queen. "If he behaves himself, he can be let out early."

Marcus shook his head. "I feel as though that is too lenient. Remember, we have no way of knowing how sincere Rider was in his actions."

"Then can we treat him as though we believe he was not?"

"Perhaps we can get a sense of it over time," said the king. "If the captain believes that Rider still has yet to fully prove himself, then we can keep him imprisoned for a while. If he continues to display good behavior, then we can meet again to discuss the possibility of shortening his sentence."

Marcus nodded. "If, however, he displays poor behavior, and shows us that he has not changed from his deceitful ways…" He glanced over at the queen before continuing. "Then he will not be released."

The king looked thoughtful. "Very well. I believe that is a fair judgment."

He glanced at his wife, who was frowning a little, but sighed and said, "I suppose that is appropriate."

"Then that shall be Flynn Rider's sentence," said the king. "Captain Marcus, thank you for your input. You may deliver it."

Marcus gave a little bow. "I shall, Your Majesty."

* * *

Unsurprisingly, Rapunzel was waiting a few feet away from the door. "What did you say?" she asked.

Marcus looked down at her, and silently cursed Rider if he had, in fact, manipulated the princess—she had developed something of a devotion to him, and he would be merely regarding her as a tool to achieve his goals. Unfortunately, it was a possibility he did not consider unlikely. He hoped that she would be able to overcome this interest in Rider—it would be best for the princess to not get hung up on the kingdom's most wanted thief, and it carried a much lower chance of her getting badly hurt.

"We discussed it thoroughly," he said, "and decided that Rider does deserve a lighter sentence than what he would normally get."

Rapunzel's face brightened. "But," Marcus continued, "there is no guarantee that he is a different person than the deceptive thief we know him to be. Therefore, we have decided to sentence him to spend his life in prison. If he proves that he has, in fact, changed, then we will discuss shortening his sentence somewhat."

The princess did not look so pleased anymore—as Marcus had supposed might happen. "How can you say that he's not a different person? Didn't you hear what I told you? What he told you?"

"We did," said Marcus, "but there is no way of confirming someone's true inner feelings."

"So you're just going to assume the worst of him?"

"We know him to be a criminal. We do not know him to be a hero."

"I thought you just said there was no way of confirming his true inner feelings."

"I have seen his actions. They are that of a criminal."

"What about his actions over the past two days? Are those that of a criminal?"

Marcus pursed his lips. "He may have been deceiving you, trying to get into the kingdom's good graces through his treatment of the princess."

Rapunzel put her hands on her hips. "I think I can tell that he wasn't deceiving me."

"Can you?"

If Marcus had given himself more time to think, he might have not said those words, or said them quite like that. But he was getting tired of being contested against by his allies. As Rider had shown them in the past, he was a delinquent thief—why was that so hard to believe?

Rapunzel's eyes hardened. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that Rider is a master of trickery. It would be all too easy for him to make someone like you believe in him."

"What do you mean, 'someone like me'? Why can't you believe me when I say he's just not a bad guy?"

Marcus's patience broke. "Because, Princess, royal or not, the word of an idealistic eighteen-year-old girl who likes to believe in people just isn't good enough to absolve a man who's been causing Corona problems for years! Rider has charms, prepared statements, and who knows how many methods up his sleeve that he uses to lie to, betray, and steal from people. Against someone who hasn't had much experience with that sort of thing, he'd excel! So, sorry, but when you've had regular contact with criminals and liars, then you can present your experience for some serious consideration."

For a moment, Rapunzel looked back at him, looking as though she'd been struck. Then, turning, she hurried away, disappearing down the castle hallways, her hair trailing behind her.

Marcus sighed. Great, now he'd done it. Now Rapunzel was upset with him. Part of him regretted lashing out at her like that…but maybe it was for the best. Hopefully she'd come to see where he was coming from—even if he had said it a little harshly.

But in any case, he had a sentence to deliver.

* * *

He arrived at the prison in not much better spirits, even though he had been imagining delivering the pronouncement upon Rider. "Captain," said William, meeting him at the door and saluting. "Have you decided what to do with Rider?"

Marcus nodded. "We have. Come."

The two of them walked along the row of cells. As they passed by one, Marcus glanced inside, and saw the Stabbington brothers. "You got them?" he said, his mood lifted.

William nodded. "We took your advice, Captain. Shot at them, and eventually got one in the leg."

That was true, Marcus saw—the one without the eye patch had a bandage on his right leg. "How'd you get them both?"

"Well, the other one dropped back when he saw his brother was injured. With one wounded, and the other trying to protect him, we didn't have that hard of a time of it."

Dropped back? Protect? Marcus looked at the brothers and saw that, indeed, there seemed to be some sort of bond between them, even as they sat in silence in a prison cell. Now he was even more confused than before. He had been wondering if Rider actually had made a change—he was far from convinced, but it was an idea that he hadn't been able to completely banish—and now it was possible that the Stabbington brothers had more to them, too?

Frowning, he pushed those thoughts to the side, and continued walking, at a slightly quicker pace than before. In his distracted state, he almost walked past the cell that Rider was in, and probably would have done so had William not cleared his throat upon their arrival. "Wha…ah," said Marcus. He drew himself up and forced himself to look serious. "Flynn Rider," he said.

Rider looked up. "That's me."

So, he still retained at least some of his cheek. Marcus frowned and continued. "Flynn Rider, for numerous counts of burglary, larceny, and robbery—"

"Aren't those all the same thing?" interrupted Rider.

Marcus's face darkened. "There's a difference. Now, interrupt again and there will be consequences for you." He resumed his sentence. "For numerous counts of burglary, larceny, and robbery, Flynn Rider, you are hereby sentenced to spend the remainder of your life in prison. If you prove yourself to be, indeed, a changed man, no longer devoted to a life of crime but focused on doing good, we may consider lightening your sentence." His eyes grew intense, and he leaned over. "If, however, you prove otherwise, things will not go well for you."

He straightened up and turned away from Rider, whose face had displayed surprisingly little emotion during the pronouncement of his sentence. As he strode away, William jogged up next to him. "That's what the king and queen decided, sir?"

"With my input, yes."

William frowned. "Forgive me, sir, but are you doing all right? You seem…"

Marcus waved a hand. "I'll be fine. I just need a bit of time to myself."

William slowed. "Oh. Okay, then. Hope you feel better."

"Thanks."

But Marcus didn't feel better as he left the prison and wandered around the castle. Just a little while ago, everything had seemed so neat and orderly—he had rescued Rapunzel, arrested Rider, and retrieved the crown, essentially fixing all of his problems from the past week or so. Yet things hadn't fallen into place as nicely as he'd thought.

_Was_ Rider being sincere? It was an idea he just couldn't bring himself to accept…

* * *

The crow flew through the evening sky, the darkness making it less noticeable. As such, it didn't draw any attention when it flew up to the castle and alighted on one of the windowsills. It turned its head from side to side, looking for its intended recipient.

It didn't have to wait long. Moments after its landing, a figure strode down the hall, also looking around. His eyes alighted on the crow, and he smiled, making the bird shudder somewhat—the man had always had a sinister feel, at least to the crow. Nothing compared to the woman it delivered messages for, but still.

The figure came up to the crow, reached out, and retrieved the message attached to its leg. He unrolled it and read it over. It wasn't often that he received correspondence from her—this was likely to be something important.

It was. He read it over two times to make sure he understood it fully. So, the time had come, then. He had to admit, when she had approached him years ago about working for her inside the castle, he hadn't exactly jumped at the chance. But she had shown him what she could do, and convinced him that working for her could get him rewards that he'd only dreamt of. So he'd kept an eye on things for her, occasionally informing her about some notable event that he thought she'd consider useful to know.

Now, however, he had been given a different task. She was planning a bold move—but one that, if successfully executed, would have outstanding results for both of them. He just had to make sure to do his part right. He didn't have a whole lot of time to plan—she was planning on making her move the next day—but he had been thinking about moments like this for a long time.

Especially the last one. He couldn't hold back a smile as he read one of the last lines. _Of course, for this plan to be realized, Captain Marcus must be removed from the picture. Do whatever you can to make sure this happens._

How he'd waited to hear that.

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: I will reveal the identity of the inside man in a couple chapters…but before I do, I'd love to hear your speculation as to who it is. Let me know what your thoughts are.**


	15. Mother Gothel

**A/N: Much thanks to The cat with blue eyes and Guest for your reviews. It makes me glad to see that not everyone thinks the inside man is the same guy (and, of course, that people are enjoying my story).**

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

The news of Flynn Rider's capture and Rapunzel's return spread quickly through the castle so that, by the next morning, no one wasn't aware of the events that had transpired the previous day. People were surprised that Rider hadn't been sentenced to hang—as was the usual punishment for thieves of his caliber—and so there was a lot of speculation and attempting to find out the reason behind it.

But it was all to no avail. Even some of the guards, when asked, admitted that they didn't know the reasoning, and that it was Captain Marcus and the king and queen who had delivered the sentence. And those three weren't saying anything—the king and queen were either too busy to be bothered with questions about it or simply kept their mouths shut, and Marcus had become difficult to find. Some people thought of asking Rapunzel instead, but she remained either shut in her room or too mysteriously downcast to say anything on the subject. And so, people's curiosities went unsatisfied.

Much to their displeasure. On two separate occasions that morning, Tara passed by Lady Olive in the halls, who was wringing her hands and wailing in frustration. "Surely they can let someone like _me_ know…I have been nothing but loyal to the kingdom for the entire time that I've been here! Which has been my whole life. If I could just find Captain Marcus, I'm sure he'd…"

Tara managed to tune her out, but she had become curious herself about what Marcus was doing. He couldn't have shut himself in his room again, could he have? He hadn't just suffered another vicious failure; on the contrary, he had achieved a victory that had set everything from his last failure right. She was surprised he hadn't gone back to walking around the castle with his usual air of confidence.

Unfortunately, the second time that Tara saw Lady Olive, she was accompanied by her husband, Lord Basil—who, upon catching sight of the bookkeeper, made sure to say loudly, "Don't worry, my dear. If the captain can't spare time even for someone as distinguished as yourself, then he is not worth our concern. He's probably too busy strutting around feeling good about himself to care about anyone else."

Knowing that he was only trying to goad her (most likely still sore about their conversation the previous day), Tara forced herself to keep walking and not acknowledge him. She had only gone a few steps, though, when she heard a faint voice.

"…like to give him something to really whine about, the little…"

She blinked, looking around. It appeared to have come from behind a nearby tapestry. And…was it her imagination, or did it sound like Marcus?

Cautiously, she approached the tapestry. "H-hello?"

For a minute, there was no response. Then, she heard the voice say quietly, "Anyone else out there?"

Tara looked around. "Um, no, not right now."

"Good." The tapestry was parted to the side, and Tara saw that it was indeed Captain Marcus behind it, in a small alcove that she hadn't realized was there. "Hi, Tara," he said. "Guess I should have been a little quieter, huh?" His eyes narrowed as he looked past her. "Though it's hard to restrain myself with that stuck-up so-called _noble_." He blinked and shook his head. "Sorry, that wasn't very courteous of me."

"Well…he's not very nice," said Tara, frowning slightly.

Marcus grinned at her. "Wow, you're saying something negative about a noble? You must really hate him."

She blinked, confused. "Sorry?"

"I…sorry, that may not have come out right. I'm just saying that you're normally pretty nice, and it was unusual to hear you…anyway, sorry if that came out wrong."

"Um…it's okay. Th-thanks for the compliment."

"Oh, yeah, sure. I was just joking around, anyway…er, about you hating him, not about you being nice," he added hastily. "Geez, I've really been demonstrating my way with words recently…"

"Hm?"

"Oh, nothing. I just…" He hesitated. "I might've upset Rapunzel a little yesterday." He sighed and leaned back against the stone. "Things are a lot more complicated than they should be, Tara." He gestured around him. "Which brings me to why I'm hiding behind this tapestry. You're probably pretty curious."

"A little…but I won't force you to tell me."

He smiled at her. "See, that's why I was glad that if anyone was to find me, it'd be you. You're not the type to pester people with questions. Unlike every other person in this darn place…"

"Well, human curiosity is a powerful force, sir."

"Don't I know. I just needed some time to get away and try to collect my thoughts."

"Sure. I don't think anyone would blame you for that."

He chuckled. "Thanks, but I'm not sure if I share your optimi—" He broke off, looking down the hall. "I think someone's coming," he said in a low voice. "Quick, get inside."

Tara's eyes widened, taken aback. "I-inside? There? With you?"

"Sure, it's big enough for two. C'mon, I'm not ready to be found just yet."

After a split second's hesitation, Tara ducked behind the tapestry, and Marcus let it fall back to its original position. The alcove was big enough to accommodate two people—but small enough so that it was something of a cozy arrangement, a fact that did not escape the young bookkeeper. As Marcus listened for the people outside, she tried to fight back the blood rising to her face.

Another couple of moments passed, and then Marcus relaxed. "Think they've gone." He leaned back against the wall and sighed. "Gonna have to get out at some point, though…"

Trying to distract herself from the fact that Captain Marcus was just a couple feet away from her in an enclosed space, Tara looked around. "This is a nice little spot."

Marcus nodded. "Yeah. It was a favorite place of mine and Rapunzel's when we were kids. Especially when we played hide-and-seek." He grinned. "Of course, it eventually got to the point where the first place either of us went to check was here, and it lost its value as a hiding place." He looked around. "Except for cases like this, though."

He closed his eyes, and Tara took the opportunity to watch him. She was struck by…how _normal_ he seemed. Instead of the confident and capable captain image, he just looked like a regular person, needing some time to himself. She knew she felt like that on occasion, and found herself wondering what other connections there were between the two of them…

Then, his eyes opened. "Oh, shoot, I did need to get that done…" He straightened up, then hesitated. "Doesn't sound like there's anyone out there…"

"Do you need me to check, sir?"

"Oh, uh, sure. That'd be nice, thanks."

"You're welcome."

She squeezed out of the alcove, feeling her face burn up as she passed _right next_ to him. Then, she emerged from the tapestry and looked around. "No, I don't see anyone."

"Great." A second later, he followed her out. "Well, I've got to get going…but good seeing you."

"You…you too, sir."

* * *

Tara couldn't help thinking back to the compliments Marcus had paid her—that he thought she was nice, for one…and had he suggested that he liked spending time with her? No, it wasn't quite that; it was that, if someone had to find him, it was good that it was her. But that was similar, right?

Her concentration slipped enough so that, at one point, she accidentally kicked a book that was lying on the floor of the library. After a startled exclamation, she bent down to pick it up and, out of curiosity, glanced at the title.

It was a book on magic, specifically on the history of magic. Tara's mind shifted (slightly) away from Marcus at that point—she had always loved reading about magic. It wasn't widespread, but its rarity made it all the more fascinating. There were magical objects and plants, like the healing flower that had cured the queen eighteen years ago and whose power now lay in Rapunzel's hair; and there were magical spells and potions, which were used by sorcerers and sorceresses, those who had firmer control over magic than other people did.

Tara opened the book and sat down in one of the library's chairs; she didn't have much to do at the moment, and felt like reading. The page she opened to detailed some of the most well-known sorcerers and sorceresses of the times. Unfortunately, many of these people had used their powers for evil or personal gain, rather than being benevolent with them. Still, they were interesting to read about. There was Carabin the Savage, who had wiped out dozens in an attempt to establish a reign of fear—but he was perhaps the most vicious. Others, like the infamous Father Summus, were less violent, but more clever and cunning, and able to accomplish a lot more in their lifetimes. Then there were the more shadowy ones, like the mysterious Mother Gothel, who had attempted to bring an entire village under her command through magical subterfuge, and who, when discovered, had mysteriously vanished, unheard of since.

Tara was about to turn the page when something struck her. The name "Gothel" was familiar…where had she heard it before? Wait…wasn't that the name of the woman that Rapunzel often made visits to? Who had taught her about her magical hair? That was an odd coincidence…

Wait…_was_ it a coincidence? Tara looked back at the entry on Mother Gothel…and relaxed somewhat. The sorceress hadn't been seen in hundreds of years. There was no way she was still alive. No known magic was powerful enough to keep someone alive for that long.

She was about to turn the page again when another thought struck her, and her eyes widened. No known magic except…

Her eyes darted back to the information on Mother Gothel, and she scanned the page for the area where the sorceress was last seen. After a moment, she found it, and her heart jumped. It wasn't too far from where the magic flower had been found. Was it possible that…

She quickly rose from the chair. She needed some notepaper and some more books, but maybe she was on to something. But if she was, then it was entirely possible that the princess, and maybe even the whole kingdom, was in danger.

* * *

Rapunzel had retreated to the stables, where she hoped people would be less likely to look for her. She didn't want to hear any more questions about what had happened with Eugene, why he had gotten a reduced sentence, why she was looking so downcast…

There was no way they could understand. Actually, she wasn't sure if she understood. She had gone through a huge host of unexpected emotions in the past couple of days, not the least of which was some light, positive feeling that she got whenever she thought of Eugene. When had that happened?

But at least he was going to be okay; Marcus had mentioned that he could be let out early if he showed that he had changed. That couldn't be too hard, could it?

Unfortunately, she knew that it could. Marcus, at least, seemed determined to think the worst of Eugene, even though he had heard what she had said about him. How did he not trust her? His words from the previous day still stung. Sometimes, he could be too self-absorbed for his own good.

A feeling of guilt came to her with that thought, but she pushed it aside. Marcus wasn't perfect. They had had fights before, plenty of them. Yet…nothing quite like this. Nothing involving someone like Eugene…No, sometimes Marcus just needed to take a step back and look at things. She couldn't doubt that he was genuinely concerned for her, but that didn't mean he still wasn't wrong.

A footstep on the hay behind her made her turn around. "Oh, hello," she said, relaxing slightly—she suspected that her time in the woods had made her a little more high-strung than she usually was. "Sorry, do you need me?"

"As a matter of fact, Princess…"

She saw him swing his arm, felt a sharp pain on the back of her head, and then everything went dark.

* * *

Taking care to make sure no one else was around, the figure knelt down to conceal the princess's body. As he did, however, an angry chittering came from her shoulder, and he saw Pascal the chameleon growling aggressively at him. "Shut up, reptile," he growled back, and swung his hand, hitting the chameleon and sending him flying. He hit the wall and slid down, but whether dazed or unconscious, the figure didn't know. Or care, even; it wasn't like the little creature could do anything to stop him.

Nor could anyone else, for that matter. The sorceress would be there in moments to do her part, and then, he would set about carrying out his plans in full. He had been able to get a lot done in the time since he got her letter. Thinking up plans, making arrangements with certain people…

He had just what he needed to carry out Mother Gothel's plan. He would take care of Rider—that was easy enough. And as for Captain Marcus…Marcus would be utterly defeated. His failures would crash down on him, and he would be overwhelmed. And then…then would come the ideal time to strike.

* * *

Mother Gothel could not keep a smile from her face as she approached the castle. It was finally time.


	16. Paralysis

**A/N: This is another long chapter, but another one I really like. Lots of stuff about to go down…**

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

Marcus's duties were slowed that day due to the fact that the inquisitive people of the castle (of which there were too dang many) had decided that it was their business to know what the reasoning behind Flynn Rider's situation was. As many of them didn't have the opportunity (or the nerve) to ask the king or queen, the captain was their go-to guy. And so, he found himself fending off a plethora of questions from people who didn't seem to grasp the concept of secrecy. He was able to send most of the people scurrying away by telling them firmly that it was not their place to know all of the reasons, but his frustration was still building, for two reasons. One, he had to keep doing it, over and over. And two, it forced him to come back to the idea that Rider really didn't deserve a harsh sentence.

The idea seemed ludicrous. How could anything make up for all that he had done? But, on the other hand, how could someone who saved Rapunzel's life be all bad? It nearly hurt his head.

As he often did, he wished his father was there. Then he could have someone really close to talk about this with. As it was, there was no such person. Due to the confidential nature of the situation, he wasn't going to tell anyone who didn't already know about it, and the people who did know about it didn't present themselves to him as ideal confidants, either because they disagreed too much with him or because they didn't have the time. His father, even though he had been a busy captain, could have taken time out of his schedule to help his son, but other older adults like the king and queen could not be expected to do the same. He had to manage on his own.

"Captain!"

Marcus forced back a sigh as he heard his title, and turned to see William coming up to him. "Yes?"

"Sorry to disturb you, sir, but there's a small disturbance in the stables that people were wondering if you could help with."

Marcus frowned. "What kind of disturbance?"

"Maximus is acting a little upset."

"Have you tried asking Rapunzel? She'd probably know what to do."

"Well…" He paused. "We're not sure where she is."

Fear rose up in the captain before he forced it back down. That didn't mean Rapunzel was missing again; it probably just meant that she was off sulking somewhere. Well, maybe _sulking_ wasn't the right word. But something along those lines. "All right, I'll come take a look."

The two guardsmen walked through the castle to the stables, where Marcus found Graham the stable boy trying to calm a clearly agitated Maximus. "Easy, now," he was saying. "Calm down…what's yer trouble?"

"How long has he been like this?" asked Marcus, walking up.

Graham turned. "Oh, hello, Cap'n. Ah jus' found 'im like this a few minutes ago. Can't tell what's gotten 'im so worked up."

Marcus turned to the horse. "What's the problem, Max?"

Maximus looked as though he wasn't sure himself. He was pacing restlessly in his stall, tossing his head, and snorting, occasionally whinnying. "'E jus' seems disturbed, like something's rubbin' him the wrong way," said Graham.

"Can you give him a sedative?"

"Ah could, but ah'd like ta see if there's any way to help whatever's causin' this."

"Maybe he ate something bad and his stomach's upset?"

Graham frowned. "Ah'm not sure…ah wouldn't say it looks like he's sick…"

"But you haven't seen anything like this before, Captain?" said William.

Marcus shook his head. "Can't say that I have. If Maximus has been agitated, it's been because of a clear reason. This is unlike him…"

"Captain!"

Marcus turned to see Claudius running up to him. "Claudius."

"Captain, there's something wrong with our food. Seven of the guards have gotten sick, and that was just when I left."

"Seven guards?"

Claudius nodded. Then, his eyes widened, and he doubled over. "Er…make that eight…"

After William had escorted the young guard to the infirmary, Marcus turned back to Graham. "Sorry I can't help you further, but I have to check on my men. I'll leave Maximus in your capable hands."

"Ah'll do mah best, sir."

Marcus strode out of the stables to check on the other guards. Fortunately, he had eaten separately that day, and so didn't think that he'd be too much at risk of getting sick, too. Still, a bunch of sick guards was never a good thing. Hopefully nothing would come up in the next few—

"Oh, Captain Marcus!"

He stopped walking abruptly and gritted his teeth before turning to the speaker. "Lady Olive."

The lady looked more upset than usual—which was saying something. "Oh, it's dreadful, Captain! I've been robbed! Robbed, I tell you!"

Marcus raised an eyebrow. "Robbed?"

Olive nodded. "Some very valuable and important necklaces of mine are gone! You have to get them back!"

"Have you made sure to search in the likely places?"

"I'm quite certain I placed them on my bureau last night, and saw them there this morning."

That didn't answer his question. "Perhaps they were simply knocked off."

"No, I looked all around the bureau. There was no sign of them!"

That did suggest something…but knowing Lady Olive, "looking all around" could just be staring at a couple spots on the floor. "Don't worry, Lady Olive," said Marcus, though he was starting to feel frustrated. "You—they've probably just been misplaced."

"I'm quite sure they haven't been."

Marcus forced back a groan. "I will send someone to look into it."

"What? Captain, this is a serious matter. Surely it merits multiple guards investigating?"

"I will see what I can do, Lady Olive, but I'm a little short-staffed at the moment."

"Short-staffed? What's going on?"

"Nothing serious. Just a bit of sickness that's affected a few of the men."

"Well, surely there are enough people so that you can spare several?"

"Yes, well, as I told you, I will see what I can do. Now, if you'll excuse me, I really must check on my men."

Without giving her a chance to respond, and leaving her with a frown on her face, he spun around and strode off, taking long steps to make it look like that he really was in a hurry. Well, he really was—but he needed to make sure it looked that way to Lady Olive.

He sighed. It was just turning into one of those days.

* * *

And things only got worse. By the time he had gotten things settled with his guards, twelve in total had taken ill. Given the fact that the royal guard wasn't giant to begin with, that was a substantial blow. And to add fuel to the fire, two more nobles had reported thefts, nobles that weren't as empty-headed as Lady Olive. So Marcus had come to regard them seriously, and had sent two men to investigate each of the three incidents.

For his part, he had another thing to check out. The guards getting sick at the same time as a rash of thefts? That was a little too much of a coincidence. Someone must have planned it out. Someone with a penchant for stealing.

He reached the cells, which were currently a little understaffed, and walked down the rows, his eyes hard. After a few moments, he reached the cell he had started for. "Flynn Rider," he said distastefully, looking upon the cell's occupant.

Rider looked up. "Captain. Pleasure to see you again."

"Cut the crap. What do you know about a series of thefts that have just taken place in the castle?"

Rider looked around at his cell. "Um…that they've taken place while I've been in here?"

"Really? Sure you didn't find a way to sneak out and help yourself to whatever you could find?"

Rider held up his hands. "Hey, I haven't stolen anything since the crown."

"Oh? Can you prove that?"

He shrugged. "Wanna search me?"

"I do." Marcus called over one of the guards, Henry, and had him watch Rider while he searched the cell. But his search turned up nothing; not even a secret compartment that the thief had dug, or something.

Well, he wasn't done. Turning to Rider, he commanded, "Turn out your pockets."

But the thief had nothing of value on him. Confusion set upon the captain as he frowned at Rider. If he hadn't stolen those things, then who could have done it? Someone else in the castle? But who?

He left the prison much less satisfied than he had been when he arrived. And then, the events of the day took a turn for the disastrous.

He passed a couple of guards who looked rather hassled, which he chalked up to having more work due to the reduction in their numbers. That is, until Saxtus spoke to him. "Sir, we've got trouble."

"More trouble?"

"Yes, sir. It…it looks like the princess is missing again."

Marcus's eyes widened. "What?"

Saxtus nodded. "She was supposed to meet with the king and queen over a half hour ago. They've looked around for her, and we've found out that she was last seen going to the stables. But there's no sign of her there, or outside. You haven't seen her, have you?"

Marcus didn't answer. This…this didn't seem possible. How could Rapunzel be missing again? She couldn't have gone out for a ride; Maximus was still in the stables, as he had seen himself just a few minutes ago. All of the high-profile criminals that had been been recently active were now in prison. No one else could have done anything to her, could they have?

He put a hand to his head. What was going on here? His men were sick, Maximus was agitated for no reason, several people had been robbed, and now Rapunzel was missing again? It was…it was overwhelming. What was he supposed to do? He only had so many guards to devote to any task…but where were they supposed to look for Rapunzel, if they had already checked the stables and outside?

"Captain Marcus!"

Oh, this was not good. Now Lord Basil was walking up to him, his expression hard. "Captain, I hear you have been neglecting your duties. My wife has been robbed, and we are only sent two guards to look into it?"

Marcus clenched his fists. "As I explained to Lady Olive, we are doing everything we can at the moment…"

"And this is all you can do? I expected better—"

"We currently have several issues to deal with, Lord Basil," replied Marcus firmly.

"Nothing that can be set aside? Need I remind you of our unceasing loyalty to the kingdom? We expect to be treated with the appropriate respect."

Marcus snapped. "Unceasing loyalty?" he laughed. "Basil, your favorite pastime is to criticize the goings-on of the castle, and your wife cares more about gossip than the actual people she's gossiping about! Don't make believe with me!"

Basil looked livid. "How dare you? I was a noble of this castle when you were still an infant, boy!"

"Is that why you think you can understand how my business works? How it is being the captain of the guards? You don't have a clue, Basil! Why don't you try thinking things through and showing some actual compassion for people for once in your life?"

And, face still furious, he stormed off, ignoring Basil's indignant comments behind him. The man was absolutely infuriating; it was a wonder he hadn't set off anyone else yet.

He stopped in an empty hall, and his hand gripped a nearby spear, held by a suit of armor. Everything was falling apart…his control of the situation, his control of everything—his temper, his anxieties, which were threatening to overtake him once again. Where was Rapunzel? Why had so many people been robbed? Why, when, where, who, what, how?

"Captain?"

He looked up to see William coming towards him, relaxing slightly at the sight of a friendly face. "Yes?"

"Er…the king and queen wanted to see you, sir. Are you available?"

_Snap._

William looked taken aback, but Marcus didn't even look at the now-broken spear in his hand. He couldn't face them. He had nothing to report, nothing he could do. He had no idea where Rapunzel was, no idea who had stolen from the nobles or why, no idea why _anything_ was happening anymore…

In a very small voice, he said, "I can't…"

And with that, he turned and ran. Ran through the castle halls, away from Basil, away from the king and queen, away from his problems, away from his torments. He didn't pay attention as to where he was going, but he found himself in front of the tapestry behind which he and Rapunzel had used to hide, and where he himself had been just earlier that morning. Without thinking, he ducked in, collapsed to the floor, and broke down.

* * *

Shifting several straws, Pascal climbed out of the small pile of hay, shaking his head. He had been unconscious for a few minutes, the impact from the wall having been harder than he might have expected.

He sat up and looked around, eyes wide. No, Rapunzel wasn't there. And neither was her assailant. Pascal was still processing the fact that _he_ had actually attacked Rapunzel. True, he hadn't seen the man much, but he knew that he was a loyal guy in the castle, and never would have suspected him to do this. But why would he…

Something came back to Pascal: when he had been half-conscious, he recalled hearing a pair of faint voices, one male and one female. He hadn't recognized the latter, but he thought he remembered the male one saying a name. What was it, now…

He shook his head again, and it came back to him: Gothel. The woman that Rapunzel went to visit. There had always been something about her that hadn't stuck with him. Well, he had never actually met the woman, but still…

Anyways, had Gothel kidnapped Rapunzel? That was certainly what it looked like…but what could he do about that? It wasn't like he could tell anyone…and with a traitor in the castle, he wasn't sure who he could trust. Besides, Gothel had probably taken Rapunzel back to her tower, and no one knew where it was.

The chameleon blinked. No one…except Flynn Rider. Pascal tended to trust his instincts, and they told him that Flynn—or Eugene, or whatever he was supposed to call him—was the best person who could help Rapunzel right now. Sure, he had distrusted the thief at first, but he had warmed up to him over time—as had Rapunzel. Pascal might not have been a genius, but he knew a few things, and he could tell that the two of them genuinely cared for each other. And since he had actually been to the tower, he could be the one to save Rapunzel.

The only problem was, he was currently locked up, and wouldn't be let go any time soon. And Pascal didn't think he could convince the guards to let him go. Well, maybe Marcus would listen…but finding the captain of the guards would not be a piece of cake, especially for someone as small as himself. If only there was some other way to get Flynn out. Someone else, or some other people who could help…

And that was when the idea came to him. It was out there, he'd admit—but the more he thought about it, the more his instincts told him it was the best he could do.

He picked himself up. Well, if he was going to do it, he'd better move quickly. Scurrying over to Maximus's stall, he climbed up so as to look the horse in the eye. Maximus was still restless, but caught Pascal's eye, and looked at him.

The chameleon did his best to pantomime his message. _I need your help._

* * *

Tara rushed from the library, a piece of paper clutched in her hand. If what she had discovered was true, then she needed to alert Captain Marcus and Rapunzel as quickly as possible. Since Rapunzel was the one in the most danger, she went to her room first. Surprisingly, however, she found the door ajar. Hoping that that meant that Rapunzel was inside, she knocked. "Princess Rapunzel?"

However, it was not the princess who answered the door, but a man in a guard uniform. "The princess is not available at the moment," he said.

"Do you know when she will be?" asked Tara. "It's important."

The guard shook his head. "I'm sorry, I don't."

"Oh. Well, thank you anyway."

He nodded and closed the door. Not wasting any time, Tara turned around and hurried off to find Captain Marcus. If Rapunzel wasn't available, then hopefully he was.

But no one answered when she knocked on his door. Frowning, she left to look elsewhere, when she ran into William, one of the guards whom she knew to be fairly close with the captain. "Excuse me," she said, and he turned to her. "Do you know where Captain Marcus is? I have some important information for him."

William frowned. "I don't. But he seems to be having some troubles at the moment."

"What do you mean?"

"I saw him run off a couple minutes ago. I was just about to check if he was in his room…but have you already done so?"

"Yes; I just came from there."

"Hm. That's odd. It's most unlike the captain to crumble under pressure like that…" He sighed. "Well, I hope he's okay. I'll check around, and if I find him, I'll let him know you're looking for him."

"Thank you."

As William walked off, Tara thought. Crumble under pressure? What was going on? What was causing Marcus to be weakened like that? Did he need help? Well, that last one was irrelevant; if she didn't have an idea of where he was, there was no way that…

She blinked. But she _did_ have an idea of where he was…

* * *

No one was in the hallway as Tara approached the tapestry. She took small, hesitant steps; even if Marcus was there, what was she going to do? Was it even her place to go looking for him? He might not want to see her, after all. Should she keep going?

But as she debated with herself, she heard a sound from behind the tapestry, a painful exclamation that she could best describe as a combination between a choked sob and a gasp. Unable to stop herself, she stepped forward and pushed aside the tapestry. "Hello?"

The sight that greeted her was perhaps the most heartbreaking thing she had ever seen. Crumpled on the floor, body shaking and low moans emanating from him was Captain Marcus. Tara couldn't hold back a gasp; she had seen him defeated before, but it was nothing compared to this. Before, he had been slightly broken. Now, he was shattered.

After a second, his body stopped shaking, and he lifted himself up into a kneeling position and turned his head. Tara was too taken aback to do anything but stare back into his red-rimmed eyes.

For a moment, he returned her stare. Then, he snorted lightly and turned away. "Not that it matters anymore…"

"Captain…what's…"

He shook his head. "I can't do this," he said quietly. "I'm nowhere near ready. I can't handle it all. It's too much for one person to handle!" His voice had risen until it become almost hysterical.

Tara dropped to her knees beside him. "But…you've handled things in the past, Captain. I'm sure you can—"

"Not like this," he said, cutting her off. "Things are piling up. Everyone expects me to be some great leader, even in times like this. But how? I'm just a twenty-two-year-old guy. Sure, my father was captain before me, but that doesn't mean I can do everything he can. Not at all…"

"But you can still do the best that you can. No one can blame you for that."

"Oh, they can. And besides, I can't do anything anymore. I'm done, Tara, done." He sagged again.

Tara had no idea what to do. He didn't look as though any comforting words could pick him up. He was just too far gone. But there had to be something that could bring him back…

She thought. She remembered times when she felt really upset or stressed, and the instances when things had worked out best was when there had been someone to talk to about her problems. Maybe that was what Marcus needed. Just an ear to listen, and maybe come up with some helpful ideas.

It was worth a try. If there was a way to help him, she would undertake it. "Do you want to talk about what's going on?"

He glanced at her. "What good will that do?"

"Sometimes it can help to pick you back up."

"I doubt anything can do that now."

"Well, what's the harm in trying?"

His skeptical look remained for a moment. Then, he sighed and sat up, so that his back was against the wall. "If you want to hear how bad things are messed up for me, I can indulge you." He took a breath. "First off, Rapunzel's missing again."

"What?" This was news to Tara.

"No idea where she went. Maximus is still in the stables, so she didn't ride out anywhere. She's nowhere in the near outside vicinity, and there's no sign of her in the castle. And we can't mount a full search, because a chunk of my men have gotten some sort of food poisoning. So I'm short-staffed, and I have to make sure all my men will be all right. Then, to top it off, there have been a small series of thefts in the castle, which I can only devote so much time to because of all the other problems, but people like Lady Olive and Lord Basil don't seem to understand that." He put a hand to his face. "And now, the king and queen want to see me. How am I supposed to face them when I can't manage anything right?" He sighed again. "And…well, this isn't quite in the same category, but it's still tripping me up. Then there's Rider."

"Rider?"

He nodded. "Flynn Rider, the thief. We brought him in just yesterday, and it was supposed to be a great victory, my crowning achievement. Instead, things turn out to be more complicated."

"They did?"

"Yeah. Turns out Rider had actually helped Rapunzel while she was lost in the woods, and saved her life a couple of times."

That was surprising. "He did?"

"Uh-huh. I thought it was just because he was trying to get into the kingdom's good graces, but now I'm not so sure. He seemed…well, a lot more earnest than I had been expecting when he spoke about it. Rapunzel seemed to care about him, but I thought she had just fallen victim to his charm. But I've found myself constantly questioning that. Like, earlier today, I thought he was behind the thefts in the castle—you know, he might have slipped out of his cell or something. But he wasn't, not at all. I didn't find anything on him or see a shred of guilt in him." He shook his head. "Was I wrong completely? Or have I fallen victim now? I have no idea. None."

He fell silent. "There you have it. My completely messed-up life. And I…I wish more than anything that my dad was still alive. That he was still here to help me. Of course, he'd probably be ashamed of me as I am right now…"

"That's not true."

Marcus looked up. "Huh?"

"Captain Julius loved you, Marcus." She realized that she had addressed him without his title, but decided she couldn't get hung up on it. "He'd realize that you're going through some tough times, and you're just feeling overwhelmed. It happens to everyone."

Marcus raised an eyebrow. "Does everyone get paralyzed like I have?"

"Not necessarily paralyzed, but a lot of people find themselves needing help to get through things. Your father would understand that, I'm sure."

For a second, a spark of hope flared up in Marcus's eyes. Then, it vanished. "Regardless, he's not here. He can't help me."

Tara hesitated. "You know…I'm not sure that's true."

Marcus frowned. "My father is dead, Tara. There's no disputing that."

"I'm not saying there is. But you remember him, don't you? You remember how he acted, the things he said to you. What would he say in a scenario like this?"

The captain shook his head. "I don't know. I don't think like him. He'd probably come up with some great solution to all my problems that I could never think of."

"Maybe it's not a solution to all your problems that you need. Maybe it's just something to get you back on your feet, so that you can find your own solution."

"But what's that gonna be?"

Tara paused. "Well, let's try to clear up your confusion about Flynn Rider. What do you think your father would think of him?"

A moment passed. Then, Marcus lowered his eyes in thought. "Well…he tended to avoid lenience when it came to criminals. He didn't necessarily approve of their punishments all the time, but he carried them out without fail." He thought some more. "But…he was big on trusting your instincts. On listening to your heart, because more often than not, it has the right answers."

"So what does your heart say about Flynn Rider?"

Marcus took a breath and closed his eyes. Tara sat in silence, watching him and waiting. He had to come to this conclusion on his own. And it ended up taking a couple of minutes before he opened his eyes again—but this time, they had a resolution in them that had been absent before. "I can't bring myself to think that Rider is the same thief as before. He may not be a saint…but he's changed, somehow." He blinked. "Huh. That does make me feel better, actually…"

Tara smiled. "See? Your father wasn't that far away. All you had to do was reach out."

"Reach out…" Marcus took another breath and closed his eyes again. "The thefts…I can commit a small amount of attention to them, and increase it once Rapunzel has been found…and if people like Basil don't like it…" He chuckled. "Yeah, Dad. I'll just tell him that. As for my men, I'll check in with them from time to time. It doesn't look like anything too serious, but we always have Rapunzel's hair…"

He opened his eyes. "But what about Rapunzel herself?"

The mention of Rapunzel's hair and the sensation of the paper in her hand made Tara start. Was it possible that…

"I'm not sure where to look. Dad would…Dad would ask people. Ask everyone. But what if that doesn't get me anywhere? We've already asked some people; who else would know anything?"

"Um, sir?"

Marcus turned his attention back to Tara. "Yeah?"

"I…I may have an idea as to where Rapunzel is."

His eyebrows shot up. "You do?"

She nodded. "I can't know for sure, but…well, I was doing some research in the library, and I think I found something." She unfolded the paper she was holding. "I know this sounds far-fetched, but…"

She paused. "But what?" said Marcus.

"You know that woman Rapunzel goes to visit from time to time?"

"Yeah, Miss Gothel. What about her?"

"I think…I think she may be a sorceress. An ancient sorceress who's been using magic to keep herself alive for centuries."

He blinked. "A sorceress?"

"I know it's out there, but…" She showed him the piece of paper. "There was a woman named Mother Gothel who earned a name for herself years ago. She disappeared on this date, and wasn't seen or heard from again."

Marcus looked at where her finger was pointing. "That's a really long time ago."

"I know, but she disappeared right around this area." Her finger moved again. "The same area where Rapunzel's magic flower was discovered."

"The one that healed the queen?"

"Right. That flower was really powerful. If Mother Gothel had found it, she might have found a way to use its power to keep herself alive."

Marcus remained silent as this sunk in. "So then what would she have done after the flower was given to the queen?"

"She used Rapunzel. Rapunzel kept most of the flower's healing properties, in her hair."

"Right, of course." He blinked. "And Miss Gothel was the one who taught Rapunzel about her healing hair in the first place…"

"She was?"

"Yeah. People were wondering how she knew about it, but…this might explain it." His eyes widened slightly. "And she was the one who set up Rapunzel's regular visits to her tower…" He looked down at the paper again. "What if this is true?"

"I was wondering the same thing. Rapunzel could be in danger. Mother Gothel was not recorded as a kind person. I don't think there are many things she wouldn't do to get her hands on those powers."

"She wouldn't hurt Rapunzel, would she?"

"I don't think so. Rapunzel is connected to the hair's powers. If something happened to her, or if the hair were to be cut off, it would nullify them. And, unless I'm mistaken, since Mother Gothel has been drawing on this power for so long, she's become dependent on it. Nullifying it might reverse its effects."

"Reverse? So…all of those years would catch up to her?"

"Maybe. I can't say for sure."

Marcus frowned. "Well, this could be a…" He trailed off, and his frown deepened. "Wait a minute…" His eyes grew wide. "No…wait…"

"What?"

"Eighteen years ago, a mysterious intruder tried to kidnap Rapunzel, just a few days after she was born. My dad and I stopped them, but they still got away. But he caught a glimpse of an old woman's face…"

They looked at each other. "Gothel," said Tara.

"She wanted a way to keep that power," said Marcus. "And when the kidnapping failed, she had to try something else." Fear alighted in his eyes. "But if Rapunzel's missing now, then maybe she's come back to finish the job." He stood up. "We have to do something."

Tara rose to her feet, as well. "Do you know where her tower is?"

Marcus frowned and shook his head. "No…but Maximus would. He went with her almost every time." He turned to leave the alcove. "Come on, to the stables."

"Me, too?"

"Sure, absolutely. You're a part of this now, too." He paused. "And…you've helped me more than you can imagine." He turned to her. "Thank you, Tara. I won't forget this."

* * *

Unfortunately, no white horse was waiting for them at the stables. "What do you mean, he got out by himself?" said Marcus.

Graham scratched his head sheepishly. "'E loosened the door an' took off. We tried ta stop 'im, but 'e was gone before we could do anythin'. Sorry."

Marcus's face darkened. If Maximus wasn't there, what options were left for him?

At his side, Tara spoke up. "Thanks for the information."

"Sure. Ah'm sorry ah couldn't do more."

"We'll manage," said Marcus, trying to believe it.

He gritted his teeth as they left the stables. "Why did Maximus run out like that?" he wondered aloud. "And how else can I find Gothel's tower now?"

"There's no one else who would know where it is?" asked Tara.

"No, Rapunzel always went alo—"

He broke off and stopped walking. "No…there is someone else."

"What? Who?"

"Rider. He told us that he and Rapunzel stopped by the tower on their way back to the kingdom. He's seen it." He bit his lip. But could he really use Rider's help? Well, he stood by what he said in the alcove a few minutes previously: he was convinced that Rider had changed. Again, maybe not completely, but enough so that he could try using his help. "Well, then we'll bring him out," he said. "Although…I'd like to know as much as I can about Gothel before I go up against her. Is there more information in the library?"

Tara nodded. "I'm sure I can find some things on her."

"Then let's take a quick detour there."

They made their way in that direction, Marcus keeping an eye out for any guards along the way. And, as luck would have it, the very guard he had hoped to run into became visible as they turned a corner. "William!" Marcus called.

"Captain!" said William, looking surprised. "I…is…is everything okay?"

"I'm fine, thank you," said Marcus. "William, I need a favor. I need you to bring Flynn Rider to the library."

William blinked. "What for?"

"We think he can help us locate Rapunzel."

"He can?"

"Yes. Try to be as quick as you can, please."

"O-of course."

William still looked confused, so Marcus added, "I'll explain things later. Right now, Rapunzel may be in danger, and we have to act quickly."

"Right. I'll be right back."

"Thank you."

And with that, the three went their separate ways.

* * *

William walked through the halls, turning over this new development in his mind. Had Marcus really deduced where Rapunzel might be? He had probably had help from that young bookkeeper, Tara—William had heard that she possessed a powerful degree of intelligence. He wondered if she also had anything to do with the fact that the captain had gotten back on his feet so quickly; he had looked like he wouldn't be ready to take action for a while.

As he drew near to the prison, he thought about the order he was about to give. The guards would most likely be surprised, but when they heard that it had come from Marcus, they were likely to comply; the young captain drew a fair amount of admiration from the other guards.

He got to the door that led to the hallway of cells and stopped before the two guards stationed there. "Henry, Vance," he addressed them.

"William," said Henry.

"Captain Marcus has just given me an order. It concerns Flynn Rider."

Vance blinked. "Rider? What's he got to do with anything?"

William made sure to keep his face expressionless as he responded. "There have been signs that the princess was kidnapped by an intruder…and that Rider assisted the intruder. Enough evidence has been collected to condemn him on this account.

"Therefore, the captain has ordered that, in order to prevent him from providing any more assistance, and as punishment for acting so egregiously against the kingdom, Flynn Rider is to be hanged immediately."

**(~~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: Heh, heh, heh.**


	17. The Thief and the Captain

Flynn had a bad feeling about things. Something was up. Guards had been running around the place, and there were fewer of them around than usual. Plus, of course, the captain had gotten on his case for a bunch of thefts that had taken place in the castle. Was he always that edgy?

And he wasn't the only one who had noticed things. Voices came from further down the hall, which Flynn focused on. It took him a second to recognize them—but those were definitely the Stabbington brothers talking to each other. Or, rather, one of them talking and the other one grunting in response (Flynn wasn't quite sure why One-Eye seemed to never talk).

"Captain seems a bit under pressure today, eh? Wonder what's got him all worked up." There was a pause, in which Flynn thought he heard the other brother making a don't-know sound. "Yeah, we probably ain't gonna find out." He sighed. "Leg's comin' along, though. At least they didn't leave it."

"Mm-hm."

There was silence for a few minutes, and then Two-Eye spoke again. "You ever think that we were set up? That that old woman had somethin' else in mind? I kinda got a weird vibe from her."

Flynn blinked. Old woman?

"Why would she've just given us the opportunity to kidnap the princess? Yeah, I don't like it."

"What?" Flynn's curiosity had gotten the better of him, and he called out from his cell.

Silence filled the hall after he did so. Then, Two-Eye called back. "You talkin' to us?"

"Yes, you. What old woman are you talking about?"

"What's it to you, Rider?"

"I want to know if someone's after the princess. You got a problem with that?"

Another pause followed. "What's with you, Rider?" said Two-Eye. "You come back for the princess, get arrested doin' so, and now you're still concerned about her?"

"I…look, that's not important."

He heard the other thief sniggering. "What, you got a thing for her, now?"

"Maybe I do!"

He had to admit, he surprised himself by saying it. And yet…he had no inclination to take it back.

Two-Eye paused, and Flynn could imagine the look of surprise on his face. After the longest moment of silence yet, he said, "Oldish woman, dark wavy hair, carried herself like she was queen of the world. Dunno anything about her. Just came outta nowhere and said we could get rich if we kidnapped the princess. She wanted a bit of the ransom, but not too much. And we coulda kept it from her if we'd wanted. We just thought she was kinda stupid, givin' up a good opportunity like that. But now…I dunno."

He fell silent, and Flynn thought. What oldish woman in the area would want to kidnap Rapunzel? There could be any number of them…well, any number that just so happened to be in the forest at that moment? Who could that be?

Then, his stomach dropped. No…what about that woman Rapunzel had been talking about? Miss Gothel? Something _had_ struck Flynn as odd when he had first heard about her. Could she have sent the Stabbington brothers? Was…was she still after Rapunzel?

He heard footsteps coming closer, and blinked. Great, did the captain want to interrogate him again? Maybe he could tell him about the possible threat to Rapunzel…

But it wasn't the captain who came into view. Instead were five guards, one of which Flynn recognized from a few previous encounters, whose name he couldn't quite remember. It was that guard that spoke. "Flynn Rider," he said.

Flynn felt a sense of déjà vu as he said, "That's my name."

But the guard made no reaction, and continued speaking, stone-faced. "We have evidence that you took part in a recent kidnapping of Princess Rapunzel."

Flynn sat up. What? She had been kidnapped? Actually?

"In light of this evidence, Captain Marcus has issued a change in your sentence. For your egregious crimes against the kingdom, you are to be hanged immediately."

Flynn rose to his feet. "What? I didn't do anything!"

"The evidence against you says otherwise. And there are also your past crimes to consider."

"Look, you've got that all wrong. It wasn't—"

"The judgment has been passed, Flynn Rider. You can say nothing to change it." He motioned to the other guards. "Bring him out."

The guards opened his gate. Two of them moved to secure him, while the other two had their swords ready. "I'm telling you, you're wrong!" Flynn yelled, struggling. "No, listen! If she's been kidnapped, then I know who did it! She's in danger!"

"Ignore him," said the first guard. He shook his head sadly. "The futile struggles of a doomed man…"

"I'm not…if you would just _listen_!"

But the guards showed no sign of letting up as they dragged him along the hall. Wildly, Flynn cast his eyes around, looking for a way out. But there were five of them and only one of him, and they were armed…

This was impossible. What evidence was there against him on kidnapping Rapunzel? Why had Marcus suddenly changed his mind? What was going on? He had to do something…but what?

* * *

William motioned to Henry and said, in an undertone, "Make sure you keep him under close watch."

Henry blinked. "Are you not coming?"

William shook his head. "No; I've never liked watching…you know. And besides, I have…other matters to attend to. But I trust you can handle this."

"Of course."

With that, William turned around and strode off, towards the exit of the prison. No doubt Marcus would soon notice that he had not followed his orders…and he would be ready to intercept the captain when he came running. Fortunately, not many people other than the guards frequented the area around the prison, and, thanks to his earlier efforts, the guard was a little short-staffed at the moment. So, hopefully, no one else would be a witness. It was not a risk-free plan…but it was all worth it. Once Marcus was dead and framed for Rapunzel's disappearance, the role of captainship would come to him. Hadn't he always gone the extra mile? Proven himself to be entirely devoted to his duties as a guard? Established good relationships with Marcus and the other members of the guard? He would be the ideal candidate.

Not to mention the one who struck down the traitor Marcus. The one who had not let personal feelings get in the way of dispatching an enemy of Corona.

Yes, things were falling into place. The only trouble was the girl Tara. At this point, she would most likely have to be eliminated, too. That would require some careful thinking on his part, in order to get her alone to an inconspicuous location, and then include her in Marcus's conspiracy once she was dead. But it could be done.

And it would be done.

* * *

The first thing that Rapunzel felt was the dull throbbing in her head. She opened her eyes slowly, and noticed that there wasn't a whole lot of light to make her headache worse. That was good…but where was she?

"Oh, Rapunzel, you're awake!"

The familiar voice of Miss Gothel calmed her down a little bit. Her eyes now wide open, she looked around. She was sitting down, propped up against the wall in the main room of Miss Gothel's tower. But how did she get there? The last thing she remembered was…

She gasped. "William!"

She saw Miss Gothel approaching her. "Stay calm, Rapunzel. Who's William?"

"He…I think he's the one who…"

Miss Gothel's face darkened. "Is he the one who attacked you?"

Rapunzel looked up. "What?"

"I thought I would pay a visit to the castle and see how you were doing, dear. But when I found you in the stables, I saw this man in a guard's uniform striking you down! I managed to fight him off, but I knew you weren't safe there, so I brought you back here."

"What? You fought off a guardsman? And…how did you bring me here?"

The older woman smiled. "Oh, there's more to me than meets the eye." A glint of what may have been malice appeared in her eye for a second, but it was gone so quickly that Rapunzel thought she must have imagined it. "How are you feeling?"

Rapunzel reached her hand up to the side of her head. "My head hurts."

"I expect it would. Well, try not to move too much; just sit there and rest, m'kay?" She hurried away. "I have to find out what's going on…but don't worry, Rapunzel." She flashed her a smile. "I'll protect you. I'll always be here to protect you."

* * *

Marcus and Tara had spent a few minutes in the library before the latter frowned. "This is taking a while…" he said. "William's usually pretty prompt."

Tara looked up. "Maybe he ran into some trouble?"

"Hopefully not. But…just in case, I'd better go check." He nodded at the books. "Thanks for all the information. I mean it."

"You're welcome." She held out the piece of paper she had taken notes on. "Do you want to take this?"

"You won't need it?"

"No, I'm fine. If you're going to do something about Gothel, you'll need all the help you can get." She blinked quickly and went red. "Oh, um, not that you _need_ a whole lot of help…that is, not that you're incapable…"

Marcus smiled. "Don't worry, I get it. I sometimes have trouble with words, too." He took the paper from her. "I might be back soon…but if I'm not, well…wish me luck, I guess."

Tara smiled at him. "Good luck, Captain. I know you can do it."

Spurred on by her confidence in him, he strode quickly out of the library, heading towards the prison. She was really something, that Tara…

As he drew near to the prison, he saw William come around from a nearby corner. "William!" he called, jogging up to him. "Did you get him?"

William nodded. "He's right around the corner."

Marcus rounded the corner, heart pounding…and saw no one. He barely had time to wonder why that was the case when he heard the sound of a sword being drawn behind him.

Instinct and training with his father kicked in, and he leapt into a forward roll, putting some distance in between him and whoever had drawn the sword. Was someone attacking him? But the only person who had been behind him was…

His stomach dropped as he got to his feet, spun around, and drew his own sword. Facing him, sword drawn, a look of malice on his face, was his trusted guard William. "What…" was all he could say.

"You weren't supposed to dodge that, Captain," said William. His voice had changed. Instead of being friendly and eager, it was now hard and merciless. "Let's try that again, shall we?"

And he lunged forward, swinging his blade. Marcus barely had time to get his own up before William brought his down. The two met, the sound of steel upon steel ringing through the hall. "What are you _doing_?" said Marcus. "Have you gone insane?"

William stepped back. "I'm quite sane, Captain," he said. "I just know where my priorities lie."

With that, he swung his sword at Marcus once more.

* * *

Flynn was getting desperate. Even though one of the guards had left, he was still outnumbered four to one, and he didn't know the area as well as they did. So, even if, by some miracle, he did manage to escape, he'd be most likely to get lost and have them catch up to him. But he had to find a way out. He had to find a way to save Rapunzel…

And then, just as panic had started to settle in, the door in front of their procession swung shut.

One of the guards blinked and stepped forward. He tugged on the handle, but it wouldn't budge. "Hey! Who's there?" he called.

A slot at eye level opened, and Flynn saw, not without being surprised, the face of the short, bearded thug from the Snuggly Duckling. What in the world was he doing here?

The thug grinned. "Hi."

"Who are you?" demanded the guard. "Open this door."

"What's the password?"

"What?"

"Password. Ya need a password."

"No, I…don't try to…"

"Nope, that's not it."

The guard glared. "You are interfering with official business of the royal guard of Corona. Open this door now."

"Not even close."

Suddenly, a door opened just to the left of Flynn and the other three guards. The former barely had time to register this before a hand—no, a _hook—_shot out and grabbed one of the guards, dragging him away. The door closed, and Flynn heard a _thunk_ on the other side. Next to him, the remaining two guards started to draw their swords—but then, a figure dropped down from the ceiling, grabbed their heads, and knocked them together. With a loud _clang_, they collided, and the guards fell to the floor, unconscious.

The sound made the guard turn around. As he registered what had happened, his mouth dropped open, but before he could react, the door behind him swung open. He had just enough time to turn and see a frying pan swing toward his face before it made contact, and he joined his comrades on the floor.

Flynn stared. Standing in front of him were the short thug, the helmeted thug, and the big-nosed thug from the Snuggly Duckling. "What are _you_…"

"No time, Rider," said another voice, and he turned to see the hook-handed thug coming out of the door next to him. "We gotta get you outta here. C'mon."

He turned and jogged down the hall, with the other four following, though Flynn's mind was still whirling. How did they know he was here, and why were they rescuing him?

Unfortunately, such questions had to wait, as the group ran into another set of guards coming down one of the adjacent hallways. "Hey, isn't that Flynn Rider?" said one.

"Yeah, and he's out of his cell!"

"Stop him!"

They gave chase, and Flynn tore off running, the thugs alongside him. "What now?" he said.

The hook-handed thug grinned. "Now we bring out the big guns."

As they passed by another perpendicular hallway, he motioned to someone to his right. Flynn got a brief glimpse of the huge thug with the horned helmet before his legs carried him past. A second later, he heard the thug yell, the guards cry out, and a noise of impact. Turning his head, he saw the group of guards go flying, no match for the big thug's bulk. "What's all this about?" he asked.

"Leave the yammering for later," said the big-nosed thug. "Save your energy for running."

And so, they continued to run through the halls of the castle, Flynn's mind racing along with his legs. Any more guards they ran into were similarly dispatched, and so they managed to reach their goal uninhibited—though the helmeted thug was pretty sure there would soon be some more guards after them. "Then we'd better get him going," said the hook-handed one, after the concern was voiced.

Flynn looked around. "And that's why we're in the stables?"

"Right," said the big-nosed thug, "because they're here."

Flynn turned, and saw Pascal sitting on top of a white horse that Flynn remembered having seen Julius and Marcus ride, and was pretty sure was named Maximus. "Oh…hi," he said.

Pascal waved, but Maximus only snorted. "That's one talented lizard, there," said the hook-handed thug. "Managed to tell us that the princess was in danger, and that you could help her."

"Horse is fast, too," said the big-nosed thug. "You'll need him, wherever you're going."

Flynn looked at Pascal. "Gothel's tower?"

The chameleon nodded. "Great. Hey…thanks."

Pascal grinned. Then, he looked down at Maximus, smiling and nodding. Maximus snorted again, but had a resigned look on his face, and gestured with his head to Flynn, which, to the best of the latter's knowledge, was an invitation to get on. "Uh…sure," said Flynn.

The hook-handed thug cocked his head, listening. "They're not too far away. Hurry up, Rider!"

"I'm going." Flynn swung himself up. "Thanks."

"Thank us later, when she's safe."

Flynn nodded. "Will do." He bent down. "Let's go save Rapunzel, guys."

At those words, Maximus's ears pricked up, and he raised his head. He turned around to Flynn, and, after the two shared a look of determination, raced out of the stables.

_Hang on, Rapunzel,_ thought Flynn.

* * *

Marcus parried another blow, his combat abilities hampered by the fact that he was fighting a man who, up until a couple minutes ago, he had considered a loyal guard and friend. "Priorities, huh?" he said. "Like what? Don't tell me you're in on all this!"

"All what? Exactly how much do you know, Captain?"

"You tell me. Are there any others in league with you?"

William smirked. "You'll be pleased to hear that no other guards are working with me. I wouldn't have poisoned their food if I had to rely on any of them."

"Wha…you _poisoned_ the food?"

William laughed. "Aw, you're so concerned. Don't worry; nothing too serious. They'll be back on their feet in a day or two. I need a full fighting force when I become captain."

"Yeah?" said Marcus, moving quickly to avoid another strike. "And why would anyone make you captain of the royal guard after you killed the previous one?"

"Simple. I'll convince them you were the accomplice in the kidnapping of the princess."

"When it's really you…" He hesitated for a brief moment, and William took the opportunity to press an aggressive assault. "Are you in league with Gothel, then?"

William blinked. "Figured that out, have you?"

Marcus grinned. "I've figured out a fair amount."

"That girl helped you, didn't she? Tara, right?"

Marcus's smile dropped. "Perhaps."

William smirked again. "Play dumb all you want. After I'm done with you, I'm going to pay a visit to her."

Rage boiled up in Marcus, and he switched over from defense to attack, now pushing the traitorous guard back. "You're not going to touch her," he growled darkly.

"Won't I? We'll see about _that_!"

At the last word in his sentence, he swung his sword down, taking advantage of an opening Marcus had left. Unable to dodge, the captain could only wince as the tip of the blade cut into his arm. The wound wasn't deep, but it did stop his assault, and allowed William to press his own. "You've lost, _Captain_," said William, infusing the title with scorn. "Soon, everyone will think that you betrayed them, that you faked your care for Rapunzel all along, that you pretended to look out for her while you were really doing everything you could to act against her." He grinned. "Why, you even sentenced the man she had gotten close to to death."

Marcus frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Come now, you didn't think I just waited for you here after you ordered me off, did you? As we speak, Flynn Rider is being strung up." Marcus's eyes widened. "And he's your only chance of finding Rapunzel, isn't he?"

If that was true—and he doubted it wasn't—Marcus had to stop it. Parrying William's sword and knocking it back, he turned to run off to the prisons. But he had only taken a few steps when he stopped, unable to move forward.

William had his cape. He laughed as he tugged on it, bringing his foe closer to him. "You really shouldn't wear a cape in battle, Marcus."

He raised his sword—and Marcus made his move. Flipping his sword so that he held it backhanded, he stepped back and drove it backwards—right into William's leg. "And you really shouldn't assume it puts me at a disadvantage," he growled.

William gasped and sunk down, releasing his hold on the cape. Marcus tore free, whipped around, and struck William on the helmet with the flat of his blade. The blow dazed his foe…so he did it again, and William collapsed, unconscious.

Marcus stood, panting, for a moment before hurrying off to the prison. He had to stop Rider's execution before it was too late…

But he had only taken a few steps when two guards came into view, Henry and Vance. Both looked dazed, but were still trying to run along. "Henry! Vance!"

They snapped to attention at the sound of his voice. "Captain!"

"Where's Rider? Is he still there?"

They looked at each other. "Well, sir…" said Henry.

"Don't hesitate; this is urgent. Where is he?"

"We were leading him off to the gallows, sir, when we were attacked."

Marcus blinked. "Attacked? By whom?"

"I don't know; a bunch of thugs. They busted him out. We've got most of them captured now, but Rider's gone."

"Gone where?"

"I'm not sure; he went off to the stables."

Marcus's mind was racing, fueled by adrenaline. "All right," he said, "listen carefully. Around that corner is William. He's unconscious and wounded. Take him to the infirmary, but when you've made sure that he's okay, lock him up. He has committed an act of high treason."

Both guards' eyes widened. "William?" said Vance.

"I don't like it either, but it's true. Make sure you do that, and make sure to remove his sword and bow. He cannot be allowed to make another move."

They both still looked stunned, but nodded. "As for the ones that helped Rider," Marcus continued, "keep them in custody, but _do not_ do anything with them unless I give a _direct_ order. Understand?"

They both nodded again. "Good. Make sure everyone else gets the message. I'm going to find Rider."

He sprinted away, ignoring the pain in his arm. Hopefully, Rider hadn't gotten too far just yet…but what horse would he have used? The horses were pretty accustomed to their regular riders, and having Rider as a rider—that was a bit of unintentional wordplay—would be something they weren't used to. He just hoped it wasn't Faustus that Rider had taken—that horse was the fastest they had, and Marcus was going to need speed to catch up to him.

Fortunately, it was not. He reached the stables, and, after a quick command to a nearby stable boy, his horse was brought over. "Tell me," he said, "have you seen a young man come through here? Brown hair, goatee, probably rode out on a horse a few minutes ago?"

"I did see Maximus dash out of here again," said the stable boy. "And someone was on his back. We didn't see who."

_Maximus_…that might make sense for the white horse to help Rider; if he knew Rapunzel was in trouble, there wasn't much he wouldn't do. "Thank you," he said, and mounted his horse.

Faustus looked up at him, as if sensing his rider's tension. "Okay, Faustus," said Marcus. "Time to run like you've never run before. Ready?"

The horse narrowed his eyes in determination, and sped out. _Let's go,_ thought Marcus.

* * *

Flynn had reached the forest when he heard the sound of another horse behind him. "Rider!"

It was Captain Marcus. But Flynn didn't have time to explain things just then. Besides, Marcus seemed to be keen on making him dead…and Flynn didn't think he would listen very well.

"Rider!"

Ignoring the calls, Flynn spurred Maximus on. Fortunately, the horse responded to his commands, and picked up the pace.

Then, Marcus called out a third time. "Rider, you idiot, I'm trying to help you!"

That was unexpected. Surprised, Flynn turned, and Maximus slowed down a bit. Sure enough, Marcus was barreling towards them, riding a chestnut horse. Even from a distance, Flynn could see the resolution in his eyes. Not knowing whether or not that was directed at harming him, he decided to take the safer route, and urged Maximus on further.

"Rider!" Marcus called. "I didn't give the order to hang you!"

Well, this guy was just full of surprises. Flynn and Maximus slowed again, and Marcus closed the distance between them some more. "What?" Flynn called back.

"One of my guards betrayed me. Betrayed everyone. He's the one who ordered your execution!"

"Yeah? How do I know that's true?"

"Because I want to save Rapunzel as much as you do!"

Flynn heard, in the captain's voice, the earnestness, the concern. He may not have been her fiancé, but Marcus was still Rapunzel's friend—and their friendship went way back. So Flynn pulled Maximus up slightly, and the horse slowed, just for long enough to allow Marcus to draw level with them. Then, both horses took off at full speed. "You know where you're going?" said Marcus.

Flynn nodded. "Yeah. Do you?"

"Well, I know where it is, but not how to get there."

Flynn raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"I know it's Gothel's tower, but I don't know how to get to it." He turned to face Flynn. "Look, Rider, we're dealing with someone more powerful than you'd think here. Mother Gothel is an ancient sorceress obsessed with keeping herself young with Rapunzel's magic."

"She's what?"

"I know it's crazy, but it all adds up. She'd been keeping herself alive for centuries on that flower before the queen took it, and after she did, Gothel focused her efforts on Rapunzel."

"So…what does that mean?"

Marcus hesitated. "It means…you might want to sit this out. I don't know exactly what Gothel has up her sleeve, but—"

"I'm not sitting this out. If Rapunzel is in danger, I'm going to do everything I can to save her."

Marcus stared at him in silence for a moment. Then, in a softer voice, he said, "You really care for her, don't you?"

Flynn nodded. "I do."

They rode on in silence for a short while longer. Then, Marcus nodded. "All right, then. I can't say I trust you completely, but…I will accept your help for this."

"Accept? If she's as dangerous as you make her out to be, it sounds like you'll _need_ my help."

Marcus narrowed his eyes. "That's irrelevant…and wrong," he added in an undertone. "But here." He held out a folded piece of paper. "Can you read while you ride?"

"Never tried."

"Try now, then."

Flynn took the paper and unfolded it, but the jostling of the horse's travel made it too hard to read. "Nope."

Marcus sighed. "That's got some useful information on Mother Gothel."

"Well, can't you just tell me?"

"I suppose. It's not clear what kind of magic she uses, but it's likely she has a variety of abilities up her sleeve."

"That's real helpful."

"How about you try shutting up and listening for a moment?" When Flynn didn't say anything, he continued. "The two of us should be able to overpower her. But…"

"But what?"

"Well, as a last resort, we can try to reverse the healing magic she's used."

"Reverse it? How?"

"I'm not sure…but we theorized that cutting Rapunzel's hair off might do it. It would nullify the healing powers, and since Gothel has become so dependent on them, it might undo everything."

"Who's 'we'?"

"Someone at the castle helped me out with all this." He gestured to the paper. "Anything else you want to know?"

"Yeah. Can't these horses go any faster?"


	18. The Sorceress's Power

Miss Gothel's words were reassuring, but Rapunzel had a hard time coming to accept that there were people in the castle who actually wanted to harm her. And William, of all people! Marcus had mentioned him a few times, and she had met him herself on several occasions. Both sets of experiences had given her a sense of a caring, devoted man who constantly gave his all to help the kingdom. But if he was hiding hostile intentions…then who else could be?

She shook her head. No, everyone was not like William. He was the outlier, not the norm.

Miss Gothel, however, seemed to think otherwise. "I did warn you," she said, as she went back and forth between the room where she slept and the big room, where Rapunzel was still recovering. "Men wait for the first chance they can get to take advantage of you."

Rapunzel remained silent. She didn't agree, but figured it was best not to openly disagree with the older woman—she had been responsible for saving Rapunzel, and Rapunzel had to make sure that the main emotion she displayed was gratitude. Besides, people didn't always agree on everything.

But…if Miss Gothel kept these views, she would never be able to open up…

She took a breath. "I'm sure things will be fine, Miss Gothel."

The dark-haired woman smiled sadly. "I wish I shared your optimism, dear. But you may have to save it until I start to figure more things out."

"What kind of things?"

"Well, if that man was trying to hurt you, who knows who else in the castle might be trying to? Even the captain himself."

Rapunzel bristled, forgetting her resolution to not disagree. "Marcus would never do anything like that."

"I'm afraid you can't be sure of that, Rapunzel."

"Yes, I can. I may have thought the best of William, but I've known Marcus my whole life. I've grown up with him. I trust him."

Miss Gothel's eyes hardened. "You lack caution, Rapunzel. It's something I've noticed. You must learn to…"

"To what? Be distrusting? Miss Gothel, I get that you're worried about me, but you can't be too careful all the time." She attempted a reassuring smile. "I…even if you may have gone through some tough times in the past, things can work out again. It may seem like a lot, but if you just start believing in a few people…"

"Rapunzel! Please!" snapped the older woman. "I am doing my best to help you here in this time of crisis! I do not need a lecture telling me how to do things!"

Rapunzel shrank back. "Miss Gothel…"

"Now just stay there and wait. I will be back in a minute."

She strode off to her room and slammed the door, leaving Rapunzel alone in the large room. She could partially understand Miss Gothel's irritation…but she didn't have to be so harsh, did she?

She looked out the window, and felt a strong hand of fear and sadness grip her. Fighting back tears, she found herself wishing that Marcus were there with her. Or her parents. Or even…Eugene.

* * *

Flynn started to recognize the area as they drew near. "Almost there!" he called over to Marcus.

The captain nodded. "How much farther?"

"Not much. Just another minute or so of riding, and then we'll have to get off."

And, after another minute or so of riding, he spotted it—the wall of ivy that hid the cave that led to Gothel's tower. "In there!" he said, pointing.

Marcus frowned. "Where?"

"Come on, I'll show you."

Flynn dismounted, and Pascal jumped on his shoulder. "You coming, too?" he asked, to which the chameleon gave him a look that seemed to say, "Are you serious?"

"Good point," said Flynn. He patted Maximus on the flank (the horse snorted again), and took off for the ivy. He couldn't help but remember the last time he had been here, when Rapunzel had taken his hand and led him through. He could still remember the feeling of her hand in his…

"Rider, what are you…you're gonna crash!" Marcus called.

Flynn grinned as he passed through the ivy onto the other side, imagining the captain's surprised face. He was able to see it after he poked his head back through and called to his companion. "Coming?"

Marcus shook off his surprise and ran forward, passing through the ivy himself. "Great camouflage," he said. "No wonder she's been able to stay hidden this whole time."

Flynn didn't respond, putting his efforts into getting to Rapunzel. He could only hope she was still all right.

* * *

Rapunzel jumped as the door burst open behind her. "Rapunzel, get away from the window!"

"What? Why?"

Miss Gothel ran over to her and pushed her aside. "They've found us."

"Who?"

"That thief Flynn Rider…and the captain."

Relief surged through the princess. "Miss Gothel, it's okay. They're my friends."

Miss Gothel shook her head. "Why would the captain willingly work with his archenemy? They're hiding something, Rapunzel. Besides, I wouldn't trust that thief."

"Well, I would." Rapunzel started towards the trapdoor. "They'll come here and we'll sort everything out. It will be fine."

"It will _not_ be fine!"

Quicker than Rapunzel had ever seen her move before, the dark-haired woman dashed in front of her, blocking her way. "You do not understand things, Rapunzel," she said, her voice low and dangerous.

"Don't I? What is the matter with you? Please, Miss Gothel, just trust me!"

Miss Gothel's eyes darkened. Then, she said, "Rapunzel, this is for your own good."

And she walked slowly towards the princess.

* * *

Marcus was a little taken aback by the scenery. He hadn't expected an evil sorceress to have set up her base in such a picturesque location. The tower was pretty enough, and situated against the waterfall backdrop. He could see why Rapunzel liked coming here. She had always liked pretty sights, especially if she could paint them.

Just ahead of him, Rider ran to the base of the tower. "Rap—" he started to call.

Marcus clapped a hand over his mouth. "Shh!" he hissed. "We don't want to alert Gothel to our presence."

Rider didn't look too happy, but he nodded. "How do we get in?" said Marcus, keeping his voice quiet and removing his hand from Rider's face.

Rider looked around. "Rapunzel said there was a secret passageway at the base."

"Do you know where?"

"No…but it's not a big base. We should be able to find it."

He ran around one side of the tower, keen eyes on the lookout. Marcus did the same, going the other way…though he wasn't sure what the secret passageway would look like.

Fortunately, he didn't have to worry about that, as, less than a minute later, Rider called out, in a low voice, "I found it!"

Marcus jogged over to his companion's (it was so weird to think of Rider as his companion) location. The thief was pulling aside tendrils of ivy and pulling at a loose stone. Another stone was already dislodged, revealing a dark space in the interior of the tower. Without a word, Marcus set to work helping Rider remove the stones. The cut in his arm made him wince, but he worked through it. Soon, a staircase lay before them, leading up into the darkness. "Okay," said Marcus, "let's make sure we've got a plan straightened ou—"

But Rider was already going up the stairs. Sighing, Marcus followed, drawing his sword.

The staircase went up for a while—as was to be expected, given the tower's height. But finally, it ended, and Marcus could barely make out the outline of a trapdoor above them. "Right, let's do this quickly," he said.

Rider nodded, and the two of them threw their shoulders against the door, which slowly lifted. Scrambling up, Rider emerged into the tower, and Marcus followed.

They were in a big room that looked like it served as a kitchen, dining room, and living room. A window at the side cast sunlight into the room. Various pieces of furniture were placed around it, including a mirror that stood by the window.

But Marcus didn't have time to take in the details. Lying next to the window, tied up, was Rapunzel. And standing over her, holding out a knife, was a dark-haired woman that Marcus knew could only be Mother Gothel.

The sorceress jabbed the knife forward threateningly. "Get back!" she said. "I know you want to hurt Rapunzel, just like that guard of yours." She spoke those last words to Marcus.

"_We_ want to hurt her?" said Marcus, stepping forward. "You should look who you're talking to. Why is Rapunzel tied up like that?"

"I didn't want her to do anything that would get her in trouble. She seems to think that you're still trustworthy."

Marcus cast his eyes briefly down at Rapunzel—who looked back up at him with a worried look—before returning his gaze to Gothel. "You can carry on like this," he said, "but it's useless. We know your secrets, _Mother _Gothel."

Alarm registered in the sorceress's eyes. "That's right, we know," said Marcus, his tone authoritative. "We know how you used to be an infamous magic-user. How you escaped to the very area where the magic flower was located. How you used its power for centuries to keep yourself young. How you wanted to use its power when it was contained inside Rapunzel." His eyes hardened. "And how _you_ were the one who tried to kidnap her eighteen years ago, and were thwarted by my father!"

He had half expected her to lose her control and leap at him, but she managed to keep her head on straight. "Those are ridiculous claims," she said.

"And yet they're true," said Marcus. "Aren't they? Or is Rapunzel supposed to believe that the woman who's tied her up, who's had a mysterious past that she's never disclosed, and who's now threatening two people very close to her with a knife, is truly the gentle woman she claims to be?" He thought of something else. "Oh, and by the way, William's in custody now. I'm sure he'd agree to come around and tell us all about his association with you. He told me, anyway."

That was the final straw. He could see how her eyes darkened, how her look hardened. "Fine," she said. "I didn't want to have to do this, but you've left me no choice."

And she leapt at him, wielding the knife…though much faster than he had anticipated. As he blocked her strike, he wondered if she had somehow used magic to augment her speed—and her strength, too; she swung that knife a lot harder than he would have guessed. But even if she had, he could still hold her off. "Get Rapunzel!" he called to Rider, who nodded and dashed over to the princess. Unfortunately, this made Gothel fight with a new ferocity, determined to get Marcus out of the way so that she could stop Rider. And Marcus was a little worn down from his battle with William—but he also had much more experience than she did when it came to sparring. With a neat little move that his father had taught him, he caught her knife with his sword and flicked it away, sending it across the room. "You can't compete with me," he said, holding out his sword.

Her response was to dash around him, grab his cape, and pull him back. Unlike in his fight with William, he didn't have time to stab Gothel, and she brought her hand down on his forearm. The impact was jarring, and made him drop his sword. Then, moving swiftly, Gothel shoved him forward. With one hand still on his cape, it tore with a loud ripping sound, and he went flying into the mirror, which shattered. Shards fell to the floor, and him with them. One pierced his leg, and he bared his teeth in a silent scream. He tried to get up, but his leg failed him, and he collapsed back down, his feet kicking several shards away from him.

He looked over. Rider had managed to free Rapunzel, but now Gothel had turned her attention to him. With a jolt, he realized that she had retrieved her knife, and was now wielding it against Rider. Yet even though he had nothing to defend himself with, he still stood his ground, trying to buy time for Rapunzel to escape. Marcus barely had time to be impressed with this act when Gothel whirled around Rider, as she had done Marcus…but this time, she was armed. Marcus let out a gasp as Mother Gothel thrust her knife forward, plunging it into Rider's back.

His heart sunk. From the angle that she had stabbed him, and from the size of that knife, that wound would very likely turn out to be fatal.

Rider dropped to the floor as Gothel stood over him, a triumphant smirk on her face. "That takes care of that," she said.

"Eugene!" yelled Rapunzel, running over to him. But before she could get far, Gothel held out her knife, preventing her from taking another step forward. "That will be all, Rapunzel," she said. "And now, we're leaving."

"No!" Rapunzel didn't make a move against the sorceress, but she was definitely not giving in, either.

"Rapunzel, I'm afraid you don't have a choice. We're going someplace where no one will ever find us again."

At Gothel's feet, Pascal stuck out his head and bit her ankle, but she kicked him off like he was an insect. Marcus gritted his teeth and tried to stand up…but still couldn't make it. His arm wasn't strong enough to push himself up, and his leg would not support him.

Gothel turned to him, noticing his efforts, and smiled. "I could finish you off now, Captain," she said, "but I really think it will be more appropriate to leave you here. Then you can think about your biggest failure of all time. And no one will ever let you forget it."

Marcus glared at her…but he knew she was right. He couldn't do anything to save Rapunzel now. Even if he took his men after her, she was skilled enough in the art of concealment that it was unlikely they would be able to track her down. People would hate him for this. Hopefully not everyone…but he definitely would never enjoy the same popularity again. And this moment, of not being able to do anything as the princess and his best friend was dragged off…he knew it would haunt him for the rest of his life.

"And as for him," said Gothel, looking down at Rider, "he's interfered in my plans just a little too often. He's gotten what he deserves." She turned back to Rapunzel. "But we must make haste. Come."

"I'm not going anywhere!"

Gothel's eyes narrowed. "You will learn that it is not smart to fight me."

"I don't care. I'll still do it. You've done all…all these horrible things and I will never stop fighting you!" She took a breath. "But…but let me heal him. Let me heal Eugene."

"Oh? And why would I do that."

"Because if you do, I'll go with you. I'll come quietly, and I won't resist. You…you can use me for whatever you want to. Just let me do this one thing."

Marcus stared at her. If Rapunzel didn't resist Gothel at all, then the chances of her ever returning to the castle were virtually zero. If she fought her, then maybe she'd be able to get away. But if not…

On the floor, Rider coughed. "No…" he said weakly. "Rapunzel…you can't…"

Marcus had to agree with him. "Rapunzel, don't," he said.

She looked back at him. "I have to."

Gothel looked at the princess, then nodded. "Very well," she said. She moved over to Rider, securing him with the ropes she had used to bind Rapunzel. "Just in case you get any ideas about coming after us."

She stepped back, and Rapunzel approached Rider. "Eugene…everything's going to be okay."

"No…you can't go with her. Please, Rapunzel…"

She knelt down beside him and stroked his face, smiling sadly. "I won't let you die," she said. "You've got a life ahead of you, Eugene. I know you can make a new one for yourself." She looked up. "Marcus will be there. He'll help you."

She looked entreatingly at Marcus, waiting for him to respond. For a moment, he was in doubt, but upon seeing her expression, he nodded. "Yeah. I'll…I'll look out for him."

Rapunzel smiled at him, then turned her attention back to Rider. "Just relax, now." Lifting her golden hair, she placed it over his wound. "You'll be all better in just a moment." She took a breath, starting to sing the song that activated her hair's healing powers.

"Wait, Rapunzel…"

She stopped, and looked down at Rider, who had spoken.

It was then that Marcus noticed one of the shards of glass he had kicked away was in Rider's hand…and realized what was about to happen a second before it did.

Reaching up, Flynn Rider took Rapunzel's hair with one hand…and with the other, sliced it all off with the shard of glass.

Rapunzel's eyes widened upon realizing what he had done. "Eugene…what…"

"NO!"

Mother Gothel was suddenly frantic. The golden hair that had kept her alive for so long was now turning brown, separated from Rapunzel's head (and the hair that remained on her head had also turned brown, its powers gone). "No!" she yelled again, reaching down and clinging onto it. But, even as she did, it turned brown in her hands. "No, no, no, no, no…"

But nothing she could do could stop it. The hair's magic was disappearing…and with it, the effects that Gothel had been using for the past centuries. "No…what have you done?" she demanded. She raised her arm, seeing as wrinkles began to form, heavy and fast. "What have you _done?_"

Her hair turned white. Her skin sunk in, clinging tightly to her bones. "No, no…" She put her hands up to her face and began to stumble around the room. "No…it can't be…no, it's impossible…"

Then, her foot caught on some of the hair that was lying on the floor, and she lost her balance…right in front of the window. Unable to stop herself, she fell out, screaming as she dropped down…down…down.

There was silence. Mustering his strength, Marcus crawled over to the window and hoisted himself up to look out. Down on the ground below was Gothel's cloak…and the only other sign of the sorceress's existence were a few particles of dust floating away.

The captain dropped to the floor and couldn't help a sigh of relief. They had done it. Gothel was gone and Rapunzel was safe…

But then, another sound caught his attention. It was the sound of sobbing. Looking over, he saw Rapunzel crying over the still form of Rider.

Rider…Rider had just sacrificed his own life to save Rapunzel.

"Eugene…" she tearfully said.

It occurred to the captain that Rapunzel would probably want a moment alone with Rider. So, dragging himself over to the trapdoor, he forced it open and slipped in, then sat back in the darkness, alone with his thoughts.

* * *

There was no way Rapunzel could hold back the tears. She had finally found what her life was missing, finally found what she needed to be satisfied.

And he was dying in her arms, with her unable to do anything about it.

Frantically, she tried the healing incantation, hoping against hope that her hair still held some of that power. Putting his hand up to her hair, she began to sing, though she had a hard time getting the words out. "_Flower gleam and glow, let…let your power sh-shine…_"

"Rapunzel."

It was no use. Her hair, now brown and short, had none of the effect that it used to. Dropping his hand, she said, "Please, Eugene, don't leave me."

He smiled at her. "Looks like I've gotta…but it'll be fine. You'll be fine."

"No, not without you!"

She could feel his body sag. "Don't worry," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "You've got Marcus, your parents, and everyone in the castle. They'll look out for you.

"But…time for me to be off." He gave her one last, small smile. "You be well, now."

And he closed his eyes. "No…please…" said Rapunzel.

And then she broke down entirely, unable to process anything except that Eugene was dead. He was gone to her, forever. Tears fell from her face, landing on top of the man that…that she loved.

But then…

A glowing golden light made her open her eyes. A ray of light was emitting from Eugene's wound. Then came another, and another, flowing out. They looked…almost like her hair. She could make out little strands of light that were the same color as her hair had been. Was it possible that…

Then, another shape emerged from the wound. It was different—but upon looking at it, Rapunzel immediately knew what it was, even though she had never seen it before. The healing flower. The one that Gothel had used, that Rapunzel had used—and was now helping her one last time.

The lights continued to glow for a moment, then faded, leaving no trace of the wound that Gothel had inflicted. Holding her breath, Rapunzel turned back to Eugene. For a second, she worried that it had been too late. Then, he stirred feebly, and opened his eyes. "Eugene!" she said.

He blinked a few times. "Rapunzel?" His eyes went to her now short and brown hair, and a small grin appeared on his face. "Y'know, I don't think I ever told you I've got a thing for brunettes…"

Rapunzel couldn't speak. She threw her arms around him, nearly sobbing with joy. Then, without really realizing what she was doing, she kissed him…and he kissed her back.

It was nothing short of a miracle.

* * *

Marcus had just finished bandaging his wounds with his torn cape when he heard noises from the other side of the trapdoor. It sounded like…laughing? No, that couldn't be right; Rapunzel would not be laughing at the moment. Except…it wasn't just her making the sounds. There was a male voice in there, too…

Unable to control his curiosity, he turned back to the trapdoor and lifted it up. The sight that he beheld made him drop it right back down…unfortunately on his head. "Ow!" he said, rubbing his head and lifting the trapdoor again. This time, he crawled out and surveyed the scene in front of him. Lying on the floor together, laughing and staring at each other, were Rapunzel and Rider—both alive and well.

Marcus stared. "What…how…"

"Marcus!" Rapunzel looked up at him. "Look! Eugene's alive!"

"I can see that…but how?"

She smiled. "The flower's power didn't leave me entirely."

For another moment, Marcus stared at them. Then, the realization of what had happened hit him, and he started laughing. Rapunzel and Rider both joined in, and soon the three of them found themselves overcome with relief, excitement, and happiness.


	19. Return

The trip back to the castle was an easy one, in the sense that they were all at ease and didn't rush. Rapunzel and Eugene rode together on Maximus, who was delighted to see the princess again and even looked to be warming up to Eugene when Rapunzel told him what had happened. As they rode back up, Rapunzel felt Eugene's arms around her waist, and found herself wishing that they could stay in this moment for days. As such, the kingdom came back into view sooner than she would have liked…but, there to remind her how much she was loved back at home, several guards met them along the way to escort them back to the castle, with another couple of them running ahead to inform the king and queen that Rapunzel was back.

Her parents welcomed her back in much the same way as they had after her escapade in the woods, with lots of hugs, smiles, and exclamations of relief. They then relocated to the infirmary, where Marcus could get his wounds attended to while the king and queen heard the story. When they had finished, the queen put a hand on Eugene's shoulder. "Well," she said, "I think that decides it. Flynn Rider, in light of your recent actions, I believe that a full royal pardon is in order."

The king nodded, smiling. "I agree. You've really proven yourself."

Rapunzel's eyes brightened. "That's wonderful! Thank you so—"

"Ahem."

Everyone present turned to Marcus, lying in his cot. "Aren't such decisions discussed with the captain of the guard before passing?"

The king raised an eyebrow. "Do you have something to say, Captain Marcus?"

Marcus drew himself up. "As a matter of fact, I do." He took a breath. "In regard to the proposal to acquit Flynn Rider of all charges, as a result of his recent actions…"

He paused, and Rapunzel looked at him incredulously. Surely Marcus couldn't still hold something against Eugene after all of this?

But then, the captain smiled. "I would like to express my wholehearted agreement and support."

After a beat passed in which no one said anything, Rapunzel let out an exclamation of relief and exasperation. "Marcus, did you really have to do that?"

He gave her a small grin. "Sorry. More to scare him than you." He motioned to Eugene. "Besides, I did want to get my opinion out there." He faced Eugene. "You really surprised me, Rider. After chasing you for so long, I had come to think that you were just a thug looking to get as much for himself as possible. But I was wrong."

Eugene grinned. "Feels good to hear that."

Marcus's eyes narrowed. "Don't get _too_ cocky. I'm still the captain of the guard."

"And I will make sure to be a law-abiding citizen from now on."

Marcus gave a small smile. "I'll look forward to that, Flynn Rider."

"Eh…call me Eugene."

Marcus blinked. "Huh?"

"It's my real name. Eugene Fitzherbert."

"Ah. I was wondering why Rapunzel kept calling you that. Though you don't really look like a Eugene."

"Well, you don't really look like a Marcus."

Marcus bristled slightly. "Yes, I do."

Eugene laughed, and soon Rapunzel found herself joining along with him. Even the king and queen were smiling.

Marcus folded his arms. "Great, now I've got to deal with two of them…"

* * *

The air around the castle was lighter than it had been in a long time. The reason was fairly obvious—Rapunzel was about the happiest that Marcus had ever seen her. She could frequently be seen leading Rider—no, he was Eugene now (that would take some getting used to)—around the castle, pointing out the various sights and getting him acquainted with the building. Throughout it all, Eugene seemed pretty awe-struck, which made sense, considering his humble upbringing. It lightened Marcus's heart to see them; they really were smitten with each other. He never would have guessed it would happen—but there it was.

And, anticipating the backlash that might result from such a relationship, the king and queen had expressly forbidden people mistreating Eugene because of his background, as both a poor orphan and a thief. They made it quite clear that he was a new person now, and while some still grumbled about it, they kept their mouths shut in front of him.

From his cot in the infirmary, Marcus also managed to clear up a few other loose ends. Based on their compassionate treatment of each other, he decided to give the Stabbington brothers the same sentence that he had first given Rider—Eugene? Is it Rider if he was going by Flynn Rider at the time?—that is, life in prison unless they demonstrated a capacity for change. William, though, he was still sitting on. His crimes were flagitious in the extreme…but Marcus couldn't forget all the help William had given, under false pretenses or not. Well, there was no rush to make the decision. It would come to him when the time was right.

He had also tracked down the thieves that had stolen from the nobles on the day of Rapunzel's capture. They were more small-time criminals, paid by William to cause chaos in order to keep Marcus distracted. Marcus had taken pity on them and assigned them each a few years, especially after they revealed that they hadn't known the true magnitude of the situation.

The thugs that had assisted in Rider's escape were immediately released, but instead of retreating to their quiet lives, they had branched out. Apparently, one of them had taken up the piano, even though he had a hook for one hand (an odd combination, Marcus thought, but hey, if it worked, then it worked). Another one had set up a bakery, and another one a floral shop. Rapunzel, between dragging Eugene around the castle, had been dragging him to visit them—they had apparently struck up a good friendship during Rapunzel's short stay at the Snuggly Duckling. She was a bundle of energy, that girl. He almost felt sorry for Eugene—but the ex-thief seemed to be willing to put up with it. Love could do that to someone, he supposed.

Speaking of which…he had had a number of visitors in the past few days, but not the one that he had been hoping to see. Odd that she would distance herself from him like this…was it on purpose? Had he misread some of her signals? Well, she had seen him in his most vulnerable state—that might have put a damper on things. But they were at least friends, right?

His worries kept him from doing anything until four days after he had been committed to the infirmary, a day after the last of his men had recovered from their poisoning, and then he decided to give it a try, whatever the consequences turned out to be. Calling one of the doctors (who had a lot more business now that Rapunzel's magic hair was gone), he asked if it was possible to have a book ordered from the library.

* * *

Tara strode down the hall, trying to keep her heart steady. She had wanted to see Marcus for a while now (well, ever since he had gotten back from Mother Gothel's tower), but something had held her back. For one, there were a lot of other people visiting him, and she didn't want to be a disturbance. For another, she didn't know what they would think, with her visiting him without having been asked. She didn't know what _he_ would think, either. Would she have come across as too clingy? Too strong? Unsure of what to think, she had avoided the infirmary for four days, wrestling with feelings of guilt and uncertainty. Then, Marcus had requested a book from the library, and her supervisor had sent her to deliver it. So, heart pounding, she made her way to the infirmary. When she arrived, she was greeted by a rather attractive female nurse. "Can I help you?" she asked.

"Um, yes, I'm here to deliver a book for Captain Marcus?"

"One moment." The nurse disappeared for a few minutes, then came back. "You may come in."

Tara stepped in, feeling rather out of place. The nurse gestured to a bed about halfway down the room, where a very familiar figure smiled and waved. Nervously, Tara smiled back and made her way over. "Hello," she said.

"Hi, Tara," he said brightly.

"I've got the book you wanted." She held it out.

"Great, thanks." He barely looked at it as he took it. "So, how've you been lately?"

"Oh, um…fine."

"Good to know."

An awkward silence passed between them before Tara said, "Oh…how are you doing?"

"I'm coming along, thanks. Wounds aren't too bad, but the doctors wanted to keep me for a little while to make sure I didn't get an infection. Unfortunately, I did…but only a small one," he added, as Tara's expression became concerned. "They're treating it now. It'll be all better eventually." He moved his arm experimentally. "It would be nice to have Rapunzel's healing hair…but I don't regret that it's gone for a moment."

"So…what I heard about what happened in the tower is true?"

Marcus snorted. "Knowing a lot of people in this castle, it's probably been grossly exaggerated…but was part of it that Rider—well, he's Eugene now—sacrificed his life to save Rapunzel's? He cut off her hair, knowing that it would destroy Gothel, but would also cut off his only chance at recovery."

"I did hear that. And…how exactly did Rapunzel save him?"

"I'm not sure; I didn't see it. Rapunzel just told me that she still had some of the flower's power left in her."

"So…she can still heal people?"

He shrugged. "Haven't asked. It may just have been a one-time thing. Or maybe her bond with Ri—with Eugene had something to do with it." He smiled. "Have you seen them together?"

She nodded, also smiling. "Yeah, Rapunzel came in one day to introduce us. He's…well, he is kind of charming."

Marcus blinked. "Uh, yeah, I guess."

Tara was tempted to add, "But he's nothing compared to you," but couldn't bring herself to do it.

"Yeah, Rapunzel's got herself quite a guy," he said. "You know…I really was surprised. People really can change. Or maybe Eugene Fitzherbert was always there, under Flynn Rider, and he just needed some encouragement to get out." He smiled. "Of course, some people aren't too happy about it…but I'm learning to ignore people like that. If other people's personal lives can't conform to what they want, then they just have to learn to deal with it."

Tara nodded. "Right."

"Though there are still a few holdouts who want me and Rapunzel to get together…" He waved a hand dismissively. "They'll learn. Rapunzel's got her man, and I…" He paused. "Well, I've got someone I'm interested in."

Tara's heart sunk. "Oh?"

"Yeah. She's…she's really great. She's pretty, and intelligent. She's faithful to her duties and her friends, and doesn't stop until she's solved her problems. And…she knows me well. She knows just what to say to get me back on my feet if I've fallen down."

Tara suddenly didn't trust herself to look at the captain without losing control of her emotions. So she said to his bedpost, "Yeah, it's…it's good to have someone like that."

"Uh…yeah, it is."

Thoughts flew through her mind. Who was this girl Marcus was telling her about? Was it one of the nurses here that he had developed an attraction to over the past four days? Some of them were certainly pretty enough…

Seized by a sudden desire to get out of there, she said, rather quickly, "Well, I'd better let you get some rest. I hope you feel better."

She bowed her head slightly and walked away, silently berating herself. Why had she gotten her hopes up? Sure, she had helped Marcus out a couple of times, but that didn't mean that he would develop feelings for her. Besides, there were plenty of more appealing women in the castle, and Marcus, with his good looks and reputation, could have almost any one of them…

She was a few feet from the door when he called out from behind her. "Tara?"

She stopped, steeled herself, and turned around. "Yes, sir?"

Marcus was sitting up in his bed, leaning slightly in her direction, an odd look on his face. "Tara…you know I was talking about you, right?"

Her mind went blank. "What?"

"All those things I just said? I meant them about you."

About her? She felt lightheaded. Was…was that even possible? She turned away, overwhelmed, not sure how to react.

"Wait!"

She turned back to see Marcus rising up from his bed, grabbing the walking stick that lay next to it. Supporting himself with it, he stumbled over to her. "Tara…listen, please. Look, I know it's a long shot, but…I'm dead serious. You're the most incredible girl I've ever met. I've come to realize that over the past several days. You've always been right there for me, no matter what. Even when you saw me broken, when I had lost all hope, you didn't give up on me. And it's thanks to you that I was able to know about Gothel. You're…you're the one that I want to spend time with. Like I said, I know it's a long shot…but I just had to get that out there."

Tara finally found her voice. "A long shot? You going…going for me is a long shot?"

He blinked. "Sure. I mean, look at things. I get overwhelmed when I'm under pressure. You seem to work best under it. You can really get things done—look how you figured out about Mother Gothel—and I encounter failures all the time. I'm quick to give up, you're not. You're so much stronger than I am, Tara."

She shook her head. "Marc…Captain, you're so much stronger than you give yourself credit for. You've gone through so much, but you can still pull through. You may have difficulties, but they happen for everyone, no matter what they do."

"Yes, but if you'll recall, I only overcame those difficulties with your help."

"But you've had other ones, right? Before I started helping you? You got through those without my help." She put a hand on his arm (the uninjured one). "Captain, you're an incredible man, especially for someone so young in a position of such great responsibility. The entire castle admires you. I've seen your strengths firsthand. And I've seen your weaknesses firsthand, too…but that only proves you're human. You're not a god—though you look like one—but you keep at it. And, at your heart, you're really committed. If you weren't it would take more than just a few words to bring you back up." She looked into his eyes. "You're a man your father would be very proud of."

He looked back at her. Then, he said, "So…what does that mean? Will you still have me?"

Seized by a sudden and crazy impulse, Tara leaned up and kissed him, for almost a full second. "Does that…answer…your question?" she said, face red and breathing heavy, stunned at what she'd done.

For a second, Marcus only stared at her, and Tara was afraid she'd blown it. "I…I'm sorry," she said timidly. "I just…I've imagined doing that for so long…"

Then, he cut her off. Leaning down, he kissed her back. When he pulled away, she was too stunned to say anything. "I don't know about 'so long,'" he said, "but I've definitely thought about doing that for a little while, now."

Tara decided not to think anymore. Instead, she just listened to her instincts, which seemed to be telling her to kiss Marcus again.

So she did.

* * *

Given that the infirmary was not exactly a private place, the news about Marcus and Tara ended up spreading pretty quickly. Fortunately, the reaction was a lot more positive than the captain had expected (he wondered if two near-simultaneous instances of higher-born individuals getting together with lower-born ones had forced people to reconsider some of their viewpoints). Rapunzel had come to see him after hearing about it, and was clearly delighted with the news, claiming that she had suspected something like this ever since the night of her birthday. "Have you?" said Marcus. "Well, maybe we could set you up as a fortune teller, to take up the time that you used to have for your healing hair."

"A fortune teller?"

"No one else seemed to see it coming. Even the two of us."

She smiled. "Well, thanks for the offer…but I've got a different way to spend my time now."

Marcus nodded knowingly. "Of course. Where is he now?"

"He's around and about. I can't have _all_ of his time to myself."

"Much as you'd like to."

"Exactly."

Marcus grinned. "I suspect he's still getting used to all this. Probably needs a little while before he's completely comfortable."

"You don't think he's completely comfortable whenever I'm around?"

Marcus laughed. "If your relationship is like mine, he probably gets more nervous whenever you're around."

"Well, maybe our relationship isn't like yours."

"Maybe. What, should we do a side-by-side comparison?"

Rapunzel's face lit up. "That's a great idea! Let's do a double date!"

"A what now?"

"We'll go out together! The four of us! When are you free?"

"Um…I dunno, I'm probably not gonna be out for another few days…"

"Well, let me know. But doesn't it sound like a good idea?"

Marcus smiled. "You know, it does."

* * *

Sir Thatch also came to visit Marcus, just a couple days before he was released from the infirmary, and, as it was during a time when Tara was there as well (which had become fairly frequent, to the delight of both of them), he had the opportunity to speak to them both. "Well," he said after the initial greetings, "life has proved me wrong once again."

Marcus blinked. "Sorry?"

"Well…nothing against Tara, here, but I never would have expected this to happen. I'll admit, I even cautioned her against it on a couple of occasions." He turned to the bookkeeper. "I apologize; I was wrong on that account."

"It's okay, Sir Thatch," said Tara. "To be honest…I'm not sure anyone could have predicted this."

Marcus shook his head. "Don't sell yourself short. I still think you're the one getting the short end of the stick in this relationship…"

Tara raised an eyebrow. "How considerate of you." It was not something she would have said to the captain a few days ago—but spending so much time with him as an intimate companion had given her a new way of acting around him.

Thatch smiled. "Looks like you've got a bit of feistiness on your hands, Captain."

"Yup," Marcus agreed cheerfully.

Their conversation went in a different direction after that, mostly Thatch talking about how his recent essay had been well received by many of the other intellectuals, with Marcus and Tara interjecting words of congratulations and pleasure. He went on for so long that Marcus's eyelids began to droop, and he began to look like he needed rest. Noticing this, Sir Thatch cut himself off, apologizing for taking so long. He got ready to leave…but before he did, turned to Marcus with a more serious air about him. "One more thing, Captain."

"Hm?"

"You've got an excellent girl, there. Make sure you treat her well, you hear?"

"Uh…yeah. Of course."

After he left, Marcus turned to Tara. "What was that about? Is he your stand-in father or something now?"

Tara smiled. "Not exactly. But he's always been nice to me. I thought it was sweet."

Marcus turned back to the door. "Yeah, well, now I've got to worry about him looking over my shoulder."

"Oh, don't exaggerate so much."

* * *

There was one more encounter of note with the couple—one that they both had been expecting, and partially dreading. One day, after Marcus had been discharged from the infirmary and he and Tara were walking down one of the halls together, they found themselves face-to-face with Lord Basil and Lady Olive, coming the other way. Upon seeing them, Basil's face darkened. "The captain and a servant…well, I suppose I shouldn't expect anything more from someone like you." His comment was addressed to Marcus.

Normally, Marcus would have been affronted by Basil's remark, and would have had to fight back irritation in making a cordial response. But he had given some thought to people like Basil while in the infirmary—and had decided that they just weren't worth the effort. So, he smiled and gave a small bow. "Lord Basil! Good to see that you're still as cheerful as ever."

Basil blinked. "What…what do you mean by that?"

"Oh, nothing. Don't let it get to you."

Basil folded his arms. "Don't think you have free rein over your actions just because you are the captain of the royal guard, Captain Marcus."

"Oh, I don't. I feel like I have free rein over my actions because I'm a human being."

Basil twitched. "You have a lot to learn about the correct mindset for a high-ranking individual of this kingdom."

"I think that advice would best be directed at yourself," said Marcus firmly. "Lord Basil, if you don't have anything nice to say to me, and if you think your time is best spent criticizing my every move, then you will quickly alienate yourself, not only from me, but from many others in this castle. You like to live in your own little world, but you should know that it doesn't merge well with others."

Basil dismissed Marcus's comment with a wave of his hand. "I don't need to listen to you, boy." He turned to Tara. "You should know, girl, that your actions will bring consequences. If you had any sense at all, you'd—"

"Keep doing what I'm doing?" Some time to think herself, and hearing what Marcus had said, gave Tara a boost in confidence. "Because that seems to be the opinion of a lot of people around here."

Basil stammered, not used to being cut off, and his wife spoke up. "Look now, you can't really believe that everyone will be happy with this, can you?"

"You can't please everyone," said Tara. "Trying will just make you more frustrated."

"But there are plenty of people who do not consider this sort of thing appropriate…"

"Then they will have to learn to get over it," said Marcus. "This is what is best for us, and those who care about us are happy to see us happy." He put some emphasis on the word "care." "Those who are not happy to see us happy…can they be said to truly care for us? And if they do not, then why should we care about what they have to say about us?" He threw a hard look down at Lady Olive. "It's a lesson that this castle should learn. Those who don't…will be left behind."

And he strode away, Tara walking alongside him. Behind them, though, Basil managed to find his voice for one last scathing comment. "Your father would hang his head in shame if he were alive, boy!"

Marcus stopped, and slowly turned around. "My father," he said, keeping his tone level, "whom I _clearly_ knew _much_ better than you, would be _thrilled_ to see me happy as I am with someone as magnificent as her. Now good day."

He walked off again, though at a quicker pace than before, so Tara at first had to almost jog to keep up. "Almost lost it there…" he muttered.

"You managed," she said. "I can't blame you, though. That was a really low blow…"

"It was." He grinned. "And if I bring it up in passing to other people…well, Lord Basil isn't exactly going to be the most-admired man in the castle."

"That would be a blow to him."

"It would."

They walked on for another few seconds before Tara said, "You really think your father would like me?"

Marcus turned to her. "Tara, he'd love you. C'mon, I keep telling you what a great person you are. I know that he'd be very happy."

"You sound very confident about that."

"Yes, well…" He put his arm around her. "A very wise person once told me that I just have to reach out to my father. That he's never far away."

Tara smiled. "Our loved ones never are."

**(~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: Cheesy romance scene FTW! I confess, I'd been planning that Marcus/Tara scene for a long time.**

**As you can probably guess, we're almost done. One more short chapter to bring things to an end will soon follow.**


	20. An Epilogue, I Guess

**Three Weeks Later**

Eugene paced the hallway, stopping every once in a while to look out a large window. They'd said that they'd be back sometime that afternoon, and the sun was starting to set. Yet he couldn't see any sign of them, or anything signaling their approach…

A laugh behind him made him turn, and he saw Marcus walking up to him. The captain was in his usual outfit, sans the cape—he had given it up after Gothel had torn it, claiming that he didn't need it anymore. Apparently, that was a big deal, or at least, Rapunzel had reacted like it was. "You've always loved that cape, though," she had said.

Marcus had scratched his head. "Yeah, but…it gave me kind of a big head. I liked feeling important while wearing it. I figured that I could use a humility check."

"But…didn't you tell me once that it reminded you of your father?"

"It did, a little." He had smiled at Tara, who had been present at the time. "But I don't need a cape to remember him by."

And so, no red cloth billowed out from behind the captain as he approached Eugene. "What's so funny?" asked the ex-thief.

Marcus kept his grin. "You're like a kid, waiting for them to get back."

"Hey, it's all very well and good for you. Your girlfriend hasn't been away for a week."

Marcus's smile grew almost wistful. "No, she hasn't."

Oddly enough, Eugene felt a sense of happiness for the young captain; the two had become quite good friends since the incident in the tower. And Eugene had seen Marcus with his girlfriend (Rapunzel had insisted on the two couples double-dating a number of times, which had actually worked out pretty well), and there was no doubt in his mind that Marcus was very happy with her.

The captain continued. "But you can't deny that this was a good opportunity for Rapunzel."

"I'm not. Hey, I'm glad that she went. I'll just be gladder when she gets back."

Marcus leaned against the wall. "It will be nice to see her again. And the king and queen. I won't have to do so much worrying about whether or not anyone is gonna want to take advantage of their absence."

Now it was Eugene's turn to smile. "Sure sounds like the great Captain Marcus."

"Hey, you wanna try shouldering the duties of captain for a week, be my guest." Marcus paused. "On second thought, I take that back. I think having you in the captain's uniform would just make things worse."

"What, I haven't reformed enough for you yet?"

"There's a difference between that and you being capable of doing what I do."

"You're just afraid I'd do it so much better."

Marcus snorted. "Don't be ridiculous. You wouldn't last half a day."

"Hey, you don't know what skills I've picked up during my many years."

"No…and I don't think I want to."

"Oh, but I could tell you stories. See, there was this one time when—"

Marcus cut him off, evidently not eager to hear Eugene's tale of thievery. "Aren't you supposed to be waiting for Rapunzel to get back?"

"Eh, I think I have time. So, anyways…"

"But isn't that the carriage right there?"

Eugene spun around, looking out the window eagerly—but saw nothing. Turning back to Marcus, he saw that the captain was wearing a smug smile, and scowled. "That wasn't nice."

"Had to get you to shut up somehow."

"Yeah? Well, just for that, I'm gonna make sure to tell you this whole story, with all the details."

Marcus straightened up. "Go ahead if you want to look like you're tagging along with me. I've got things to do."

Eugene hesitated. It might be worth it to keep after Marcus…after all, a lot of people in the castle had gotten to know him, and he was on pretty good terms with most. Still, parading around a story about one of his heists may bring up some less-than-pleasant thoughts among some of the people…

Out of habit, he turned to the window again…and his heart leapt as he saw what looked like the beginning of the royal escort. He leaned slightly further out and squinted. Yep, that was Maximus, all right. The horse and the ex-thief now got along pretty well, so Eugene had to fight back the urge to wave—Maximus probably wouldn't see him, anyway.

Standing up, he smiled and began to head towards the stables. "They're back," he said.

"Really?" said Marcus. He started toward the window—but stopped. "Wait. You're just trying to get me back, aren't you?"

"No, I'm serious. Go ahead, look for yourself."

He smiled as he walked away, both because he knew Marcus would be kept there for a while, torn with the indecision—but, more importantly, he was about to see Rapunzel again. After a second, though, the captain jogged up to walk alongside him. "So, you believe me?" Eugene asked.

Marcus kept his expression noncommittal. "Not necessarily. I just happen to have some business to attend to in the stables. I thought now might be a good time."

"Right. Well, if that's the case, you won't mind it if I get there before you."

He quickened his pace—and Marcus matched it. "It wouldn't hurt to get there as soon as I can."

"I guess not."

Eugene began to walk faster, and Marcus copied his increase in speed—then went even faster himself. Grinning, the ex-thief started to jog, outstripping the captain—until Marcus went into a jog himself. Soon, the pair was in a full-out race, dashing as fast as they could to the stables, passing a few bewildered nobles along the way.

Eugene noticed that Marcus was starting to wear down, and guessed that the armor was slowing him down a bit. Plus, he had had more experience than the captain with running. And he felt fine, full of stamina. So, when the stables came into view, he put on a final burst of speed and shot through the doors, only slowing down when the outside was in view. Panting, but with his grin still on his face, he turned to see Marcus just catching up to him, his breath slightly heavier. "Beat you," he said.

Marcus looked up. "Oh…we were racing? Because…I totally…wasn't going…as fast as I could."

Eugene nodded. "Uh-huh. You think…you can go again?"

Marcus drew himself up. "Of course. I just…see how tired…you are…and it wouldn't…be fair…to race you…in your condition."

"Sounds like you're…just making excuses."

"Yeah…you wish."

They stood there, grinning like a pair of idiots, before someone else joined them. "I didn't know you two were in the habit of racing."

It was Marcus's girlfriend, Tara. Upon seeing her, Marcus quickly adopted an air of mock haughtiness. "Racing? Oh, that wasn't a race. He'd have been way behind me if it was."

Eugene snorted. "Yeah, right. You know, Tara, I don't think Marcus will need dinner tonight; he's eaten enough of my dust already."

Tara giggled, and Marcus frowned. "I was only right behind you."

"So you admit you lost, then?"

"No…I said, it wasn't…"

Stepping in to save her floundering boyfriend, Tara said, "Did you guys see that Rapunzel is almost back?"

A smile split Eugene's face—probably making him look like a kid, like Marcus had said, but he didn't care. "Why do you think we're down here?" He looked out. "I don't see them yet, though…"

"They're still a ways away," said Tara. "It'll take them a little while to get through the village."

Eugene groaned and sat down on a nearby bale of hay. "Oh, come on," said Marcus. "You've waited about a week. What's a few more minutes?"

"He's a big romantic at heart," said Tara, smiling.

"That he is," agreed Marcus. "Though I can't help but notice you didn't get her a welcome-back gift…"

Eugene sat up. "A what?"

"You know, some flowers or something. I'm sure she'd love something like that."

"Wait…that's what people do?"

"Oh, yeah."

The ex-thief stood up. "But…there's only a few minutes before she gets back! Where am I supposed to find flowers?"

"The royal garden has some."

"Yeah, and the gardener doesn't like them being picked."

"Well, if they're for the princess…he might understand."

"Good enough for me," said Eugene, and he ran off, missing the smirk on Marcus's face and the almost reproving look Tara was giving him.

* * *

He got back just as the royal escort was returning, a small collection of flowers in his hand. He had only managed to pick a couple before being shouted at, and even though he insisted that they were for Rapunzel, the gardener did not let up on getting him out of there as quickly as possible. So he only had three meager stems to show for his work—but hopefully, Rapunzel wouldn't be too insulted. He had run back to make sure he wouldn't be late, so, for the second time, he entered the stables panting. A few feet away, one of the older stable boys was leading Maximus back into his stall. "Good ta see ya back, Maximus," he said. "Hope ya had a fun time."

The white horse nodded, then saw Eugene looking over at him and smiled in greeting. The ex-thief returned the smile, but realized that if the horses were getting re-situated…that meant that they were back. He looked around. "Is she here yet?"

Tara pointed, and Eugene looked over to see the princess getting down off of the carriage, Marcus standing by to give her a hand. He started forward, calling out, "Out of the way, Mr. Captain. That's my job."

Marcus looked aside at him with an amused glance, then stepped back to allow Eugene to take his place beside Rapunzel—where he was supposed to be. He grinned and offered her his hand. "May I help you down, Your Highness?"

Rapunzel smiled at him, and he forced himself to not throw himself on her. But fortunately, she wasn't exactly keen on waiting for their reunion, either. "Eugene!" she said, and, after taking his hand and descending from the carriage, threw herself into his arms. "I missed you!"

"I missed you, too." Feeling the flowers in his hand, he cleared his throat, suddenly feeling sheepish. "Uh…these are for you." He held them out. "Not much, sorry…"

But her face lit up as she took them from him. "Oh, Eugene, that's so sweet! You didn't have to!"

"I didn't?" he said, before she threw her arms around him again and kissed him.

Well, hey, he wasn't gonna complain.

* * *

Marcus, meanwhile, was attending to the other passengers. "Did you have a nice trip, Your Majesty?"

The queen nodded. "It was wonderful, thank you, Marcus. But we are glad to be back."

"Especially Rapunzel," said the king. "She loved the Viridian Cliffs, but…well, you could tell where her mind was for most of the trip."

Marcus looked over at the princess, who was eagerly showing Eugene some of the paintings she had done. "I bet I can." His gaze shifted over to Tara, and he smiled. "I can imagine how it would be."

* * *

As the king and queen walked back to the castle interior, the former glanced back and smiled. Noticing this, the queen turned around as well, and smiled as well. "They look happy, don't they?"

Her husband nodded. "They do."

Several feet away, Rapunzel was still showing Eugene her artwork—though his eyes were more often on the artist than on the paintings. A few feet away from them, Marcus was making sure everything was in order—though _his_ eyes probably spent more time on Tara than on anything else, who was looking over at him with a warm expression. As soon as he was done, he walked over to her, and they both broke into huge smiles.

"It's always good to see this," said the queen.

"Mm-hm," said the king. "Although…Eugene does seem a bit old for Rapunzel, doesn't he?"

His wife smiled at him. "Oh, people said that about us, too."

"They did?"

"Some." She put an arm around his waist. "And look how well we've turned out."

He nodded, smiling widely. "Look how well, indeed."

Outside, the sun set, casting its orange light on the three couples. It signified the end of a day—but a day with many more to follow.

* * *

There, you have my story. That'll be all—wait, why are you all still here? Oh, wait…you want to know if they get married, don't you? Yeah, that's the big question. Well, I like to think that a little ambiguity at the end of a story isn't always a bad thing, and it can be fun for the readers to—

Ow, hey, quit it! Hey, stop, stop! All right, all right, I'll tell you! Geez, readers can be as bad as those castle nobles I wrote about…yeah, they got married. Took a bit of time, and a couple of fights (nothing too major; stop looking so worried), but they got around to it. Yes, both couples. Rapunzel and Eugene, and Marcus and Tara. And…do I really have to say this? Oh, fine. Just for you guys.

And they're living happily ever after.

FIN

**(~~~~~~~~~~~)**

**A/N: And that's the end of _Snarled_, my imagination of what _Tangled_ might have been like if the captain of the guard and his son had prevented Rapunzel being kidnapped as a baby. Thanks to everyone for the positive reviews, especially The cat with blue eyes, and feel free to continue telling me what you thought, both good and not—I'm always happy to see people enjoying my work, but at the same time, I know this is not a masterpiece, and there could be room for improvement.**

**Anyways, if you enjoyed this, feel free to check out my other stories, or keep an eye out for any new ones (though I may be too busy to post anything for a little while). In any case, make sure to always keep reading.**


End file.
